Unmasking Ghost
by Dancing Tiger
Summary: When on a mission, they find a girl, and soon after Ghost's mask comes off, dynamics on base will be off for a while. Can a young girl help Ghost recover who everyone thinks he was and discover who he really is? Bad summary, sorry!
1. Just Another Day?

**This is my first real fanfic. Yay for me! If you are reading this, I love you for giving me a chance. A few notes before we speak. This was a spontaneous thing that came from my imagination after playing Call of Duty one day. I was all like, what if the big bad boys found a(little ish) girl on a mission? Hmm… Well, takes place somewhere in Modern Warfare 2 before everyone starts dying on us! :*( Listen, most characters probably seem a bit off, but I have a few OC's in here. Doc is a medic, who works in the infirmary. Then, we have my other one. You will find out about that later. The characters may seem a bit off for you though, because even though I know all about them, they are never really extended on in the game. So I let their personalities take off a bit. And if you wonder why I don't use quite correct CoD speak, I can never manage to do cool stuff like that without screwing up royally. As for everything else, sorry that the formatting is off. I hate you computer! Thanks for giving me a try! I won't beg for reviews, but they would be great! I love constructive criticism. **

The sound of gunfire and bombs shook the air around them. A heavily armed figure waved his hand forward, yelling something to other figures close behind him. The group of three ducked behind an overturned car, the man in front leaping over to return fire at their enemies. This man in front wore a mask, it appeared, a ghastly grinning skull. One of the men behind him, smaller, yelled something at him. "Ghost, how many more are there?" The man, Ghost, ducked back behind the car, gunfire not ceasing. "Roach, how in bloody hell would I know that?" The man obviously thought better than to respond, and shot a round over the car also. He ducked down, panting. Ghost clicked another magazine into his gun. They were in no way low on ammo, but the man checked anyway.

They were in the middle of an abandoned street, lined with tall buildings and even a few houses. Well, nearly abandoned. "How much further?" Ghost yelled in the direction of the third member of the party. The muscular man looked at a piece of paper in his hands, and yelled back over the sound of gunfire. "That building over there! We just have to get them to get the hell away from us!" Yelled the third figure. No one asked who 'them' was, as it was obviously those who were firing at them. The smallest of the three was breathing heavy, and then firing over the top of the car. To Roaches ears, it sounded like the gunfire was ebbing. If it was, they were very lucky.

Roach clipped another magazine into his gun, looking over at Ghost. The man was looking at a building just across and down a bit from their location. The man turned to look back at him, the grinning skull not betraying what Simon Riley was truly feeling. "Roach, Meat, get ready to go for that building!" Roach glanced over at Meat, seeing how tightly the gloved hands gripped the gun he was holding. Roach took a deep breath, and tensed as he saw Ghost get ready to bolt.

Ghost leaped to his feet, spraying bullets at the few hostiles that remained standing as he bolted for a building a little over twenty feet away. He heard the sprinting footfalls behind him, along with their gunfire, and knew that his friends were right on his tail. They reached the door of the building just as the last of the hostile gunfire was fading. Were they lucky enough that they were retreating? It appeared so, and Ghost wasn't about to question it. He turned back slightly, nearly having Roach bump into him. "Watch it, Roach!" He yelled. The man nodded, his eyes focused on the areas where moments earlier they were being shot at from. Ghost yelled to the pair behind him. "Spread out! It is in their somewhere! Call when you find it, clear the building!" The two behind him nodded.

Roach noted that Ghost was the first to rush into the building, gun held in ready hands. Roach followed directly after him, jumping over the small pile of rubble that had once been a door. The insides of the building shown it might have once been a shop of some sort, but things were in such char and disarray that it was hard to tell exactly what it had been. Roach held his gun in tight hands, knowing his knuckles would be white were they not covered in black tactical gloves. He heard a yell to his left as he entered yet another room, and barely had time to lock in on the enemy before firing. The man fell to the ground with a thump, and Roach rushed towards his location. He kicked the gun away from the dead body, his eyes scanning the area to see if it held the Intel they needed. There was no telltale laptop to be seen, so Roach moved with silence and stamina to the next room through a charred and broken wide doorway.

He barely had the chance to breathe before he noted something else moving. He swung the muzzle of his gun and that direction, poising to shoot, only to find the man locked in his sights was a familiar one.

Ghost glowered at Roach, though he doubted the man could see through the dark tinted glasses. "Watch where you point that bloody thing, Roach" he hissed at the man. It appeared this was a bigger room at the back of the shop. Or what had once been a shop, and the threesome had joined there. "Is the building clear?" Ghost heard the rough voice of Meat ask. He nodded. "I got two tangos down in the other room, no Intel. Roach?" The man shook his head. "One tango, no Intel. It has to be in this room." Ghost let his gun rest at his side. The room was quiet, but it appeared as though a tornado had ripped through it. There were papers all over the place, furniture and chairs knocked over and knocked askew. Roach muttered something, and Ghost whipped in his direction. "What is it?" Roach shrugged, nudging some overturned items with the tip of his boot. "It's just that this was probably someone's place. They probably ran a shop or something, now they're dead somewhere for sure. Why do they have to go and damn tear everything up like they do?" Ghost shook his head. "I don't know. But it doesn't matter. We have to find that Intel. Shepherd wants it, we came here for it, and we aren't leaving without it. Understand?" Roach nodded, and kicked another piece of toppled and destroyed furniture. Ghost turned his head and went to the other side of the room where things looked a little bit more intact, and continued to look for the laptop that held some secrets that they needed. He shook his head, and took a deep breath. This could take a while.

Roach shook his head and scowled in disgust. Why did the damn Russians have to screw it up all the time? He wiped his brow with the back of his hand. It was hot and tiring, and the gear weighing him down seemed to stick to him. He saw a table that was still upright next to a positive heap of furniture and stuff, and on the table was a heaping of papers and what looked like a jacket. Roach picked his way through the stuff around him and walked over to the table. He used his arm to sweep all the papers to the floor and cried out in delight as he saw the sleek form of a laptop on the table top. "Yes!" He cried out, and Meat and Ghost turned to face him. "I got it!" He informed them, smiling. Meat let out a breath, and Ghost shrugged in a way that signified a job well done. Roach, out of sheer delight, kicked the tall pile of what used to be chairs next to him. "Screw you, Makarov!" He cheered quietly. The pile budged a bit, the top one on the pile of wreckage falling to the other side, still unexplored, of the pile. A small cry came out as the chair toppled. It took less than a second for all three members of the team to grab their guns, the laptop forgotten with the sound of another being in the room.

Roach looked to Ghost for the briefest of moments, noticing the lieutenant advancing. He heard Ghost's voice call out. "Hey! Who's there? Show yourself! We will not hesitate to shoot!" Roach felt his fingers instinctively tighten, prepping to pull the trigger. If it was one of Makarov's men, they would not hesitate to shoot either. Instead he heard another quiet cry, and saw the pile move. A figures head was just visible above the pile, and it appeared to be trying to run away through the destroyed room. "Hey!" Ghost called out, and yelled for Roach to go after it. It took no effort to catch up to the struggling figure. First of all, it appeared to be limping badly, going no more than a pained walk. The next thing Roach noticed, it was very small. Within a short second or two, he was directly behind it, and he used both of his gloved hands to grab it, pinning its arms to its sides. It shrieked a high and whining sound. "NO!" It cried, actually cried, apparent sobs coming from its mouth as Roach gripped it. This wasn't one of Makarov's men… it was a girl!

**Woow, short chapter, sorry! Thought it would be longer, but wanted this cliffie to keep yall reading! (Not that I wont be updating in like, 5 minutes, because this is the only way I know to make chapters!)**


	2. Trust Me, Please

**Once again, apologies for formatting. Forgot one thing last chapter- A disclaimer! I do not own any of this, cept my OC's of course! Thank you for reading! Love you all! (Even if I don't know you in any way shape or form)**

Roach seemed to freeze as she continued to cry, and struggle and Ghost arrived at his side. The girl he had his muscular arms wrapped around was crying and struggling, legs kicking out and arms attempting to lash at him. Of course, they had no effect. He could practically see the puzzlement in Ghosts eyes, and Meat's as well when he joined them a second or so later. "NO! I won't let you take me!" She cried shrilly. Roach sent a pleading glance at Ghost. "Let her down, but don't let her get away." He instructed Roach quietly. Roach thought he could detect something like uncertainty in Ghosts voice. He gently lowered the small girl to the ground, but kept a firm grip on her arms. She attempted to turn around, and Roach allowed her to. What he saw surprised him further.

He hadn't known what to expect, as he had never seen the face of the girl. He thought that it might have been a woman, short though, but he knew instinctively that he was looking into the wild face of a girl much younger. Her eyes were tearing up, and she still attempted to lash out at the trio. Roach ran his eyes up and down her body, noting a large gash in her upper thigh, a deep red soaking its way down her entire left leg. Ghost seemed to notice it as well; Ghost kneeled down by Roach's side, and tried to calm the girl. Roach was surprised, as he had never seen Ghost act in a way so gentle and compassionate. "Hey, it's okay" Ghosts voice soothed the young girl. "We aren't going to hurt you. We just want to talk, okay? Can I take a look at that leg of yours?" The voice seemed to have little effect on the girl, though she had stopped struggling. Now she just seemed like a tense and quivering bundle that Roach held close to him.

Roach saw her look up into his eyes, and then jerk them down again. She seemed frightened beyond belief. Roach looked over at Meat, who was attempting to flip over a couch that seemed to have escaped most of the burning. Still in a gentle yet constricting way, Roach scooped the girl up gently, holding her sobbing and shaking form close to his body. She let out a small cry of defiance, but Roach still got her gently down onto the couch beside him. It was kind of awkward, so he quietly soothed her as Ghost came over. "Hey, listen, please, we don't want to hurt you. We see you are hurt too, and we don't know who you think we are, but we won't hurt you. I promise. We want to help you. I am going to let go, but as long as you promise you won't run. Okay?" Through sobs and cry's he thought he saw a nod. It didn't really matter though, as she wouldn't be going anywhere. The leg looked much worse up close.

Roach gently set her on the couch, her back gently touching it and Roach's arm sliding away. The girl was half lying down now, and it appeared she was trying to hold her injured leg. Ghost came up next to Roach, looking down at her. She was wiping at her tears with one grimy hand, and holding her leg with the other. Roach, Ghost, and Meat just stood there for maybe a little over a minute as the girl cried, but soon they faded out of what seemed like pure exhaustion. She looked up at them, her short hair a tangled mess. Her eyes were bright with fear, and Roach felt his heart turn over. She couldn't be more than fourteen, maybe younger. But why was she here, and who was she? Ghost sat down on the couch in the little space next to her. She stared at him wide eyed and frightened, edging away from him. Ghost stood, holding his hands up a little to show her he meant no harm. Her breaths were coming quickly, and Roach was worried she was going into shock or something of the sort. Ghost whispered in his ear. "I don't know about this. You seem a bit younger, and my balaclava might have scared her a bit." Roach nodded, taking this as an order. He kneeled down on the floor next to her.

"Hey" He whispered gently. Her eyes were a vivid green and they looked at him, fear sparking them. "Like I said, we aren't going to hurt you. We are American, not Russian, if that helps." Her eyes got wider at this, but she darted her eyes away from him again. Roach noted that she was looking at a spot that she had looked at earlier. He followed her gaze, and noticed she was looking at his gun, and the magazines and pretty much every weapon taped to him in various ways. He was sure she was looking at them on Ghost and Meat as well. His hand had been gripping it pretty tightly. He turned his head around to look at Ghost, mouthing "It's our weapons" Ghost nodded, and Roach turned back to her. "It's okay." He whispered this, lowering his gun to the ground gently. "See? I told you we weren't going to hurt you. If it's our weapons that scare you, that's easy to fix. See? Mines on the ground now, and I'm not going to use it. I can't say as much about those two, though, because if someone comes in and attacks us they have to defend me. Okay?" She nodded, still eyeing the weapon on the ground. He pushed it away slightly, though still within arm's reach if he had to grab for it.

Roach saw something in her eyes with the fear. Pain. He guessed it was the leg, but he couldn't go there yet until he found out more. He looked at Ghost, mouthing the question "Can I tell her who I am and who we are?" Ghost nodded, warily. Roach turned back to face her. "Hey, I am guessing you are pretty scared right now. I am Gary Sanderson, but everyone calls me Roach. "Her mouth parted a little, and she spoke, much to Roach's delight. "Roach?" Squeaked the small voice. It sounded like a question. "Yeah, Roach. What's your name?" To his surprise and joy, she spoke. "Alison." He smiled a wide smile. Finally, he was getting somewhere.

"That's good. Now, do you think you can trust me?" Roach asked this only for one reason. He knew they had been here for a while already, in the building more than ten minutes. That was really pushing it, considering there could be more joining forces forming outside at this very moment. She seemed to nod a little, which is good. "Now, it is really dangerous right now, what are you doing here? What happened? You can tell me everything, and why you were hiding would be great too. How about that?" She seemed very reluctant, nearly bursting into tears again. Roach wanted to look back at Ghost for some kind of guidance, but figured right now he needed to work on gaining her trust. "Do you promise not to hurt me?" She whimpered. Roach felt his heart twist, almost like a physical wound. She truly was terrified. His voice was very gentle as he spoke. "Of course we won't hurt you. Never." She swallowed, chocking back another sob by the sounds of it. "I lived in the house next to here. My parents owned a shop down the street-"Her voice cracked, and she drew in a breath. "Then these bombs came, and then people. They- They killed my parents" She choked out, trailing off into sobs for another few moments. She finally sucked in a deep breath, and continued. "They killed everyone around here, and ransacked everything. I hid, and somehow, I lived. I knew they were coming to my house next, but when they bombed my leg got hurt." She looked at her leg, and Roach himself winced. He had suffered something similar, but the bombing was nearly a week ago, and she was so young and small. She continued after a breath. "I dragged myself over here, and it was already like this. I hid over there, where you found me, hidden for what seemed forever. I thought they were gone, but then they came back. They seemed like they were planning something. They talked about this thing, 141 something, and hurting someone, and this guy Shepherd. It's a little foggy, but if I focus I could remember more, I think" Roach nearly froze as he heard this. 141?

Surely, he hoped, the girl had to be mistaken. Roach wished it, but by the sound of her voice and by the sound of her trauma, she was in no way lying. And Shepherd? That had to be something bad they were stewing up. For the first time since he got her name, he looked back at Ghost and Meat. Both of the tall, strong men had worried looks on their faces. It was not a good thing, to hear this, but Ghost was starting to look antsy. Roach felt the same way. They had to get out of here. Time was of the essence, and time was something they did not have in excess. Roach leaned down to her, and could sense she had more to tell. He didn't doubt it, but he found himself launching into another question. "How old are you?" She wiped her hand over her face, trying, it seemed, to clear away the tears. She swallowed, answering quietly. "I'm thirteen, my birthday was last month."

Roach felt his jaw want to drop open. He had suspected fourteen or a little older, but barely thirteen? She was very young, and brave and smart considering what he had heard her say. Once again he felt the time nagging at him. "Please, can you trust us? We want to help you, but we really need to go." She looked up at him, wide eyed, and the defiance he had seen in her struggle became apparent in her cracking voice. "I don't know you at all. How can I trust you at all?" He took a breath. He knew she was right, and using her common sense as well. "You don't have any reason too. But have we given you any reason not too?" She shook her head. "Can I have a minute?" She asked. Roach nodded, knowing that this time was not a luxury they exactly had. He turned around, looking at Ghost. The masked man had just finished speaking into the radio at his shoulder. "We have a bird coming in o two minutes. We need to get out of here and down the street. Hurry it up. What I've heard from her, we need here. She might know something valuable." Roach nodded, kneeling down again next to her.

Roach noticed she had her eyes shut. He spoke to her once again in a gently tone. "We really need your answer now. We need to go, and are in danger the longer we spend here. We need you to come with us though, because we think you heard something important, and we need to fix that leg of yours. Can you please trust us?" She drew in a shaky breath, opening her eyes. Her voice was firm when she spoke, surprisingly so. "Yes, I think I can." He smiled at her answer. "How about we get going, then? We are going to have to go down the street. Can you come with us?" She grimaced, and Roach knew what was coming. "I can't walk. I had to drag myself over here, and this thing hurts like hell." Roach swallowed before speaking again. "I will have to carry you, I guess. Is that okay?"

Roach looked into her brilliant green eyes. Everything in her body language spoke of a battle being fought in her mind, telling her to run, another side telling her to trust. She took a breath. "Yes, that's fine. Just, please, it hurts really badly." He nodded, and stood up. He very gently slid his arm under the crook of her legs, and the other around her back. He lifted her small, frail body into his large arms, and held her gently to his chest. He was nervous that he could have broken her frail and shivering body, the one he held close to him, and looked towards Ghost. "We have one minute to get there. Let's go." With that, Ghost and Meat took off at a light jog through the building, guns out and ready. Roach looked at his gun only for a brief moment before following.

Roach felt like he was carrying a bomb with the way he was, mentally. He didn't was to jostle her leg or make her feel uncomfortable in any way, but he had to get down the wrecked streets and to the chopper. He heard her gasp and even cry a few times as he ran along, each time Roach drawing her in a little closer to him. Soon, he felt her wrap her arms around his neck. He smiled. So, this was something close to trust. He had to have her trust him, or they would never get anywhere. And, in the few minutes he had heard her, he felt sympathy beyond anything. This poor, young girl.

**Eh, short again! Oh well, what can I do? Review please! Love the critics in you all!**


	3. A Change In Ghost?

**Huh, once again, sorry for formatting, I don't own any of this, yada yada yada… If I did own Call of Duty though, I would make Ghost take off his shirt once in a while : )**

Ghost was leading the group, and they arrived at the bottom of the street just as the large black helicopter began to drop from the sky. It landed, the blades still spinning, and Ghost jumped in without hesitation. Meat was close behind, with Roach on his tail. Roach yelled to Ghost. "Ghost, I am going to set her in, then get in. Okay?" Ghost nodded, noting the care in which his friend placed the young girl in the helicopter. Only a moment after she was on the floor, Roach jumped in afterward. Ghost peered at the huge gash in the girl's leg, that looked extremely painful. "What about that leg?" Ghost yelled to Roach. His friend replied. "How far till we get back to base?" Ghost looked at his watch. "ETA I would say twenty minutes" Roach nodded. "When we get back" Ghost nodded. Why was he taking orders from Roach all of a sudden?

Roach felt odd telling Ghost what to do. Ghost was the captain in this, not him! He felt and heard the thunder of the chopper taking off, and he gently slid Alison to the center of the open door helicopter, feeling she would slide out. Her eyes were screwed shut, and she looked in pain. Hesitantly, seeing her head bump against the floor, he pulled her partially into his lap. Her eyes opened wide at this, but as they hit another bump and her leg was jarred, she closed them again. Her fists were clenched, and something in him, Fatherly maybe, made Roach act. He took his one free hand that wasn't cradling her upper body in his lap and took her one hand. She didn't protest. Actually, she took it back, and squeezed it very hard whenever they hit a bump in midair.

Roach felt loads of sympathy for her, remembering the time his own leg had looked similar. It had hurt, and when he thought about it, maybe it hadn't looked this bad. Man, he thought to himself. She is pretty brave.

Roach thought it could have been hours, days, even, that they were in the air, him cradling Alison. She looked so small next to him, Ghost, and Meat, nothing more than a small bundle of clothes and bones. Roach felt her grip his large hand tightly when they finally, finally began to go down for the landing. Roach looked into the camp, and then at Ghost. "Call and get Doc ready for a severe leg injury." Ghost nodded, and began to make the call. There was a bump as they hit the ground, and Alison let out a small gasp. Roach gripped her hand and whispered in her ear. "We're here. I know it was long, but we have a doctor, and we are going to get your leg fixed. It might hurt a bit when I get out." She wasn't speaking anymore, it seemed, as it appeared she was in too much pain. The chopper powered off, Ghost and Meat jumping out. Roach pulled the girl into his arms, letting her thin ones wrap around his neck. He slid as gently as he could to the ground, her wincing in the slightest as she did. He went at a light jog with her pressed to his chest towards the infirmary.

Ghost watched Roach run with the girl to the medical ward, and followed after him. He too, felt for the girl, and was glad that Roach was getting along so well. With a friend, she might actually tell them what went on in that building. Ghost had slipped the laptop into his bag as Roach was talking to her. He arrived in the infirmary a few seconds after Roach, and found the young man talking to Doc with the girl already lying on a gurney. Ghost didn't approach further. It seemed Roach had it. He took one last look at the small, wincing figure, and walked out. Just as he exited, he bumped into Archer. Archer, their best sniper, jumps back. "Sorry!" Ghost shrugged. "It's fine." Archer went up beside him as he walked. "So, why were you in the infirmary? Did you get hurt?" Ghost shook his head. It was best to tell the truth, maybe. Ghost took a deep breath.

"Naw, I didn't get hurt. We found a girl though." Archer raised his eyebrows, a smile playing across his lips. "A girl, huh? She hot? What's she like?" Ghost found he could in two words. "She's thirteen." Archer kept walking, but his eyes grew big. "Thirteen?" Ghost nodded, biting his reply back. "Unless you're deaf, yes. Thirteen. Barely, even. "Archer looked at him. "How did you find her? And more importantly, why is she important?" Ghost walked into the main building, looking for MacTavish. He had to give him a rundown of the mission. Ghost gave Archer a summary of what she said. Archer whistled low under his breath. "Wow" Ghost nodded. They arrived at the door to MacTavish's office, and Archer stopped there. "Well, see you later buddy." Archer said and walked off.

Ghost opened the door to MacTavish's office, and the captain welcomed him in. "So, how did it go? Did you get the Intel for Shepherd?" Ghost nodded, and slipped the computer out of his bag and across the desk to MacTavish. The man didn't touch it. "You aren't exactly talkative, but I know when something is wrong. What happened on the mission?" Ghost drew in a deep breath. "Sir, we brought something else back with us." Ghost froze there, suddenly worried of how MacTavish would respond. God, he had been stupid. Suddenly, Ghost cursed himself. What had he been thinking, bringing a young civilian into base? Did he have mud for brains? "Well, come on lad, spit it out!" Puffed MacTavish's voice. Ghost replied in his out deep one. "We found a civilian, a girl, thirteen years old, badly wounded. Was by the Intel in the building. We talked to her, and she heard the Russians talking about us and Shepherd. We brought her back and she is in the infirmary sir." At first, MacTavish seemed furious. He slammed his fist down on the table. "You brought a bloody civilian child into camp? Since when does this fall into protocol?" Ghost just inclined his head a little, hoping to avoid the captain's wrath.

Ghost heard the captain take a deep breath. "Well, she sounds valuable, I guess. How badly wounded?" "Large gash in her upper thigh from when the Russians bombed that street. Killed both of her parents. I honestly don't know how she was alive." Ghost watched his captain, and his friend, stroke his chin. "Well, who was with you on this? Meat and Roach?" Ghost nodded. "How are they?" Ghost shrugged. "Roach has kind of taken to her. He was the youngest, so I figured he would scare her the least. And boy was she scared." MacTavish nodded. "So, where are Meat and Roach?" Ghost shrugged. "Meat, I don't know. I can guarantee to you though that you will find Roach in the infirmary. HE will be there with her, I know it. I just want to warn you though; he is acting like a big brother to her. Very protective, sir." MacTavish grunted. "Go find Meat and get him to the debriefing room. I will go talk to Roach and this girl, if she is still awake." Ghost nodded and walked out of the office, shutting the door behind him.

Ghost walked past the pit and over to the mess hall and rec room of the base. He knew that what where he could find everyone on a day like today. Chemo and Rook had gotten back from a recon mission earlier that day, with Scarecrow and Ozone the last evening. They had been gone a while, but now everyone was back. They would be eating, as always, or just hanging out and playing pranks. Well, Meat, Chemo, and Rocket for sure. Ghost walked into the rec room, and sure enough, he was right. All of the guys were there, messing around and swearing. Ghost was glad he was back. When he walked in though, and was noticed, he got plenty of questions fired in his direction. "Hey, what's up with the kid you brought back?" "Yeah, how is she?" "Is Roach going all soft on her like she's a lost kitten or something?" Ghost felt his head spin and held up a hand after that last one he heard. His voice was a low growl when he spoke, as he was tired and sick of this ruckus already.

"Listen" He growled. "I don't know much. You can go talk to Roach in the infirmary if you want. Meat, they want you in the debriefing room." Meat groaned and Ghost practically stomped out of the now dead silent room. He went to his own room, letting himself have a chance to rest. He wasn't tired, but he was sick of the day as it was. It was a long and stupid day, and now they had a girl to worry about. Roach is such a softy. He thought to himself. It was odd how the man became so big brotherly so quickly. Ghost knew that no matter how small and sweet she seemed, he wouldn't feel anything like that. The world had screwed with him enough, so why would it matter if it did someone else, no matter how small? A string of doubt pulled at the back of his mind, though, as he remembered her tense, shaking body pulled up against Roaches large chest.

**Oh, glorious chapter, you looked so much larger in my head!**


	4. Lucky Day Much?

**Eh, here we go I guess. Once again, I don't own anything, bla bla bla. Sorry for the short chapter!**

Roach was in the infirmary, in a chair right next to the bed with the small girl in it. Alison looked so small to him, and in comparison to all of the other men at camp. He had gotten so used to how large they were, and when he thought about it, himself as well, but seeing something as small as her made him rethink. She was sleeping, a large bandage around her upper thigh. She had had on ripped jeans, the left one now cut to high on her thigh so the wound was able to be bandaged. Her hair was short, but it was a tangled mess. She was wearing a torn sweatshirt as well, covered in dirt like the rest of her. She had small shoes on her feet, but they had been taken off and were now lying on the side of the bed. She had smiled at him before she was knocked out. An IV was standing, attached to her arm. She had been without food or water for a little under a week, and was extremely malnourished. Roach had to hand it to her. She was tough, no doubt.

Roach jumped to his feet as he heard a stampede of footfalls heading towards him, and the infirmary. He jumped up, and saw the door nearly break with the force of six men. The flimsy door to the room was flung open, and all he heard was a thunder of voices and movements. He felt anger well up inside of him, and he waved his hand at them, yelling as quietly as he could. "Hey, hey! What the hell do you think you are doing?" Most of them shut up, and Archer wedged his way to the front. "Don't get your panties in a bunch, for God's sake! We just heard there was a girl, and we wanted to see how she was doing." Roach ran a hand through his hair. "Well, you don't need to storm in here like a heard of god damn buffalo! You could have woken her up!" At this, he looked behind him, and heard the other men in the room do the same. To his relief, Alison still lay sleeping.

Roach glowered at them. "You've seen her, haven't you? Is there anything else?" Archer smiled at him, folding his arms. "Ghost says you're getting very protective. What's up with that?" Roach felt his mouth pucker into a frown. "What do you mean protective? We found her injured by some Intel, and think she heard something valuable. How about that?" Archer rolled his eyes, smirking. "You are acting like a god damn guard dog over her or a big brother if you want. Why?" Roach felt his frown deepen. He didn't know, actually. Maybe something like instinct? He shrugged. "She is valuable to us, like I said. I guess you could say I am looking over it- uh, her, I mean." Archer raised an eyebrow, as if he knew the young man was hiding something. Just as Archer opened his mouth to make some comment, a voice bellowed into the infirmary. "Roach!"

Roach froze at hearing the voice of his superior. And by the sound of it, he was coming this way. The other men must have heard it too, as they filed all the way into the room quickly and pressed themselves to the walls. Roach froze, still standing by the side of the bed. MacTavish shouldered his large form into the room, eyes sweeping until they found Roach. Roach was sure his face held a look similar to terror in it but to his relief, MacTavish's didn't hold fury. The man walked up to Roach, looking at the still figure on the bed. "So, is this the girl you found?" Roach swallowed. "Yes, it is." MacTavish looked behind him and yelled at the other men in the room. "Get out!" Roach watched as with no hesitation they filed out of the room quickly. MacTavish looked at him. "Roach, you don't need to look so God damn terrified. I just want to talk about the girl."

Roach let out a short breath, one he hadn't realized he was holding. MacTavish continued. "Ghost told me how you found her, and why we need her. As I told him, that was so far off protocol, I could have your asses skinned-"Roach swallowed, but MacTavish continued. "But, I think you made the right choice. How long until she is up?" Roach shrugged. "The sedative will be at work for the next few hours, and she is so tired I don't know how long she will be asleep. Late tomorrow morning would be my guess when she wakes up. Her leg is pretty bad though, and I think it will be another day, Doc said, until she can move around on crutches. Her body was pretty battered when we found her." Roach took a short breath as MacTavish hummed to himself. Roach waited in the terse silence as MacTavish thought, then smiled when he heard the words MacTavish spoke.

"Roach, Ghost told me you were calm and acted perfectly when trying to gain her trust. It appears she has already grown on you a bit. Since she is a civilian, she can't wander around on her own. I am putting you in charge of watching over her, making sure she stays out of trouble, or more likely here, doesn't get caught in the middle of it. Understand?" Roach smiled at the news. "Yes sir. You can make sure of it." He thought he saw something like the beginning of a smile on MacTavish's lips, but it quickly faded. "Now, you said she is sleeping and will be for a while. Go get cleaned up and get some rest." With that, MacTavish left the room. Roach could not believe his luck.

Ghost was sitting in the barracks, when Roach flung the door open. Ghost groaned inwardly, but rather than making the tired sound out loud, he snapped at Roach. "Why the hell are you here, bug? I thought you would be all guard dog bitch over that girl." Roach shrugged, and Ghost watched as he rifled through his stuff. "MacTavish wants me to rest up and clean up. I will be in charge of keeping her safe for the next few days until we figure out what to do." Ghost closed his eyes. He had to admit, MacTavish was pretty smart putting him in that position. It was obvious he thought of the girl as a little sister, or a daughter, even. Ghost heard Roach walk out of the room, saying "See ya!" As he went. Ghost sighed, grumbling to himself. Why did Roach always have to be so god damn happy and positive?

Roach felt that night fell with surprising speed, darkness falling over the camp like a blanket. Roach walked down the main hall of the barracks, and heard the dying yells of the men as they faded off into sleep, preparing for the next day. Roach opened his door to his room. Ghost was already sleeping on the top bunk, mask and glasses still on. Roach rolled his eyes in Ghost's direction, something he would never do if the man was awake. Why did he obsess so much over that mask? It didn't matter. Roach was dead tired, and the girl was on his mind. She was going to wake up tomorrow, and he wanted to make sure he was there and well rested when she did. With a sigh and a smile to himself, Roach found that he fell into the world of sleep and dreams with ease.


	5. A Long Talk

**This is good, very good! So many chapters (for a first fanfic, I guess. Well, I guess there have been more, I am sure.) So, just ignore this. Well, don't. I don't own anything cept my OC's. Here we go, hope you are enjoying!**

Roach woke to the sound of Ghost clambering out of bed. Ghost was usually silent, so this surprised Roach. Roach pulled himself up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes with the back of his hand. He dragged himself out of the bed, pulling on some clothes as he went. He ran a hand through his spiked hair, attempting to make it look better. In short, it wouldn't matter. He waited for Ghost to leave the room before he went to the infirmary. He walked out of the barracks and looked into the rising sun. The morning was cool, but there was no doubt in anyone's mind the temperature would be going up, and soon. Roach trotted across the base towards the infirmary.

Roach opened to door to the infirmary quietly, and he found that the lights were already on. Doc was looking at something on his computer when Roach walked in. "Is she still sleeping?" Roach asked. Doc nodded, looking up at him. "She has been whispering in her sleep, so I would guess she will be waking up soon. You should try and be there. It sounded like she had some nightmares." Roach nodded, but before he exited, he turned back to Doc. "How is she doing though?" Doc shrugged. "The IV has helped a lot. She was severely dehydrated, and I am thinking she is hungry. You can get her some food if she asks, just not a lot. Her leg, it's a miracle it isn't infected, and I would say she is lucky. Like I said, she can probably be up on crutches or in a wheelchair tomorrow if she rests for all of today." Roach smiled. He was glad to hear this all. He walked out of the room and shut the door.

Roach opened the door to the dark room in which Alison was staying. Roach saw everything only in the faint light cast through the open door, and he found the chair by the bed. He sat down, looking through the dark and down at the girl that just yesterday he had rescued. She was breathing deep and slow, her chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm. Roach could see the thick white bandage only faintly in the light. There was no fresh blood on it, which was a good sign. Roach found himself smiling at the prospect of her getting so well so soon. She had been to hell and back, yet was still strong. Roach tried to prepare himself for when she woke up. She had still been slightly panicky and mistrusting yesterday, so Roach wanted to do anything to prove that he was indeed a friend.

True to Roach's thoughts, a minute or so later the girl sat up with a gasp. It startled Roach, and he saw her wide eyes through the dark. He could see that for a moment she was confused and frightened, almost as if she didn't know where she was. It took only a smile from Roach and another moment for her to lie back down, her head touching the pillow it had been resting on. She spoke in a parched voice. "You scared me." Roach smiled. "Sorry. I just wanted to make sure you were okay." He heard her take a deep breath, and let it out shakily. "My leg still hurts, but not as bad." Roach grinned a toothy smile. "Well, that's always good. How are you feeling in general though?" He watched Alison bring a hand to her head. "I don't know. I have this nagging headache, and I am starved. I haven't eaten in a week." Roach nodded. "I can get you some food. Is it okay if I leave you here and come right back?" He watched her nod in the dim light, so he got up and left the room, shutting it gently behind him.

Roach walked through the base once again, this time heading to the mess hall. The sun had nearly finished peeking over the mountain horizon, which meant that with no doubt everyone on the base would be up by now. He walked into the mess hall, and was met by the usual sight of many men sitting at table, forks and spoons digging into whatever was being served for breakfast that morning. There was some idle chit chat, and a few glances went to Roach as he walked through the room. Roach found himself casting a quick look at Ghost, who was sitting and talking to MacTavish. When he saw the hint that the man was about to look back at him, he put his gaze straight ahead. There would be no use in angering Ghost. He didn't know what was bothering him. He was usually silent and mean, but now he seemed more tense than ever. Why?

Roach didn't have much longer to ponder this question, as he quickly arrived at the kitchen. He received a few nonchalant looks as he walked towards the refrigerator. He threw it open, wracking his brain for something to get Alison. A little bit of food, easy to eat, and something a thirteen year old girl would enjoy. Roach ticked through this criteria in his head, and to his dismay, as he went over each, the items that would be a good idea to give her grew smaller and smaller. Finally, he settled on an apple that was sitting alone on a shelf. Roach closed his eyes in frustration. I hope she likes apples he thought to himself, silently. He took the red fruit, put it in one of his large pockets, and walked back through the mess hall. As he was about to exit, he heard a voice call out to him. "Roach!"

Ghost didn't know why he called out to Roach. He had the question in his mind, but had no idea what possessed him to call Roach over to ask it. MacTavish was next to him, and he saw the man look at him with curiosity. Ghost tried to avoid his gaze as the small, younger member on base came over to him. Ghost forced himself to ask the question, but surprised himself when he heard concern in his voice. "How is she?" Roach had a look of curiosity on his face, but he answered. "She is fine. She was hungry, and Doc said she could have some food." Ghost watched as Roach dug into his pocket and pulled out an apple. He let out a soft, gruff noise. "Good. Go on then." Roach nodded, and walked away towards the doors.

Ghost watched MacTavish turn to him. "What was that all about, Ghost?" Ghost shrugged. "I just wanted to see how she was. I don't want one of the most valuable things we got on that recon to die on us." MacTavish shot him a questioning and accusatory look. "I know you. It's something else. I don't think I've ever seen you act this way. What is it?" Ghost felt the anger bubble up inside of him. He slammed his fist down on the table, making it shake and his glass of water threaten to spill. "I don't want to god damn talk about it, Soap!" Ghost was one of the only people who could call MacTavish this and get away with it. In fact, Ghost was one of the only people MacTavish didn't look like he wanted to kill on a regular basis. Ghost stood up abruptly, and stormed out of the room without another word, leaving his half-finished breakfast on the table behind him, and a stunned MacTavish staring after him.

Roach opened to door to the room again, and asked quietly into the dark. "Can I turn on the light?" The young girl answered in a soft voice. "Sure" Roach reached for the light switch, and clicked it on. He heard a small groan of protest escape the mouth of Alison. Roach sat back down on the chair by the bed. He watched Alison meet his eyes, and then look away again. Roach felt something in him, a feeling of defeat and rejection, as she did this. He spoke to her in a soft voice. "Hey, I thought we agreed you could trust me." She looked back at him, but this time held his gaze. "Yeah, we did. I'm sorry, to be honest, I'm still pretty scared and confused. And I am very confused at why I am telling you this, too." Roach heard a bit of wariness in her voice. He knew that she was probably telling the truth. She didn't know him or anyone else, really, and she had a perfect right to be scared. He smiled at her, taking the apple out of his pocket. "Hey, you have every right to be. I mean, this probably is all a surprise to you." He extended the hand with the apple, and she took it from him. "No kidding" she murmured as she looked the apple over. She bit into it after a moment, and looked back at Roach as she chewed quietly. Roach felt like she was hiding something behind those green eyes. "You can tell me anything, you know." He saw her close her eyes, and take a breath. "I know" she murmured when she swallowed. Roach hesitantly reached out and patted her head. It was supposed to be a comforting gesture, as Roach wanted to comfort her. It seemed to work, as the girl smiled.

Roach watched her as she took another bite of the apple. She had propped herself up with the pillow, and was now mostly sitting up. Roach saw her look away from him, and then back at him. Roach swallowed a bit. He felt that the silence was a bit awkward, not because of anything said, but because of things unsaid. He felt the tension in the air, most of it coming from her. He decided to take another stab at finding out why she was so uneasy. He thought he knew the answer, but wanted to be sure. "So, I think there is something you aren't telling me. Why are you so scared?" Roach felt stupidity as he asked the question, and the glance the girl shot him said the same thing. She spoke in a still quiet voice, but one that held a bit of fire in it. "Are you kidding me? I thought I was going to die, every minute of every day for more than a week, and then these freaky monster guys with guns come and grab me. I thought I was going to freakin die! Then you actually turn out to be okay, but I can't really trust you, because you kind of freak me out and scare me a lot, okay? And so do all of the others, more than you, if that makes you feel better. It's not that I don't trust you, well, I kind of don't, but it's just been a lot for me lately, okay?" Roach let out a small breath. He was right when he thought she was holding something back. He was right in more ways than he could imagine, and he knew that he was also right in his prediction of why she acted like she didn't trust him.

Roach continued to look at her, trying to compile a combination of words that would mean something, and wouldn't freak her out any more. He spoke in as light of a voice as possible. "Freaky monster guys? That's what you think of us?" She rolled her eyes a little bit, her voice also a little lighter when she spoke. "What do you think I would think of you? You are all like six foot something, with arms and legs thick as trees, and when I saw you first, armed to the teeth with guns, grenades, and lord knows what else. What else would I think you were?" Roach knew she was right, and he felt awful for scaring her like that. He shrugged sheepishly, and made a weak stab at apologizing. "Well, we were expecting the men you heard. We never wanted to scare you. I'm sorry, if that makes a difference. But I don't have guns or grenades now, do I?" She shook her head, the apple near gone at this point. "I guess not. But I can't change the fact that you and everyone else here is as twice as tall as me and could snap my neck by accident, I am sure." Roach grinned. "Well, my job is to keep you safe. MacTavish assigned me to that, well, more of, I volunteered." She stared at him with wide eyes. "You are going to watch over me? And who is MacTavish?" Roach opened his mouth to answer, but someone else answered for him. A deep voice entered the small room. "I am."

Roach whipped his head towards the door, which had somehow opened without him or Alison noticing. And, sure enough, just his luck, the huge and brawny form of MacTavish filled the doorway. Roach swallowed, standing as he entered. The man entered the room, and MacTavish looked at him before looking at Alison. Roach looked at her too, and was surprised to find her looking at him with huge, frightened eyes. Considering what she had just told him, and that he was minuscule next to the Sergeant, she was probably terrified. The deep voice of MacTavish spoke again, directly too Alison. "So? How are you?" It was an attempt at a question to calm her down, surely, but Roach saw that it wasn't working. He was behind MacTavish, and Alison was looking at him with wide eyes. He nodded, smiling. He wanted her to calm down a bit, and hope that MacTavish didn't scare her in any way. Well, any more than he already had.

Roach saw her swallow; look at him again for a second before looking at MacTavish. Her voice was little more than a squeak when she spoke. "Good." He grunted, what Roach knew was him saying 'good' back, but this was a young girl, not another member of Task Force 141. MacTavish didn't seem to notice the confusion in her eyes, and launched into a barrage of words that made even Roach wince. "So, you are here because you heard valuable information from one of our worst enemies, and it might help us complete the spotty Intel we received. As soon as your injuries have healed, or maybe even today, I want you to have been fully debriefed and partially informed on us. I would also like to remind you that we are a government run organization and it would be unlawful for you to withhold any information you know or have received. Is that clear?" Roach saw her look at him with wide eyes, seeming to say 'of course it isn't clear!' Roach could practically hear the panic signals she was mentally sending him. He walked close to MacTavish and went up as close as he could to the Captain's ear, whispering in it. "Um, sir, she is a civilian, a civilian child, and I don't think she understood a word of what you just said." MacTavish turned to face him, and said "Oh" in a quiet voice. He looked down at Roach. "Why don't you, uh, tell her what I just said." Roach smiled. "Gladly."

He turned to Alison with a friendly smile on his face. "What he just said was, its good you are here because you heard something that could help us a lot. As soon as you get better, or maybe today, it would be great if you could tell us every little detail you remember, because that makes a lot of difference to us. And, what he unnecessarily added was is that it is illegal for you not to tell us everything, but that doesn't matter, because I know you aren't the kind of person that wouldn't tell us that stuff. Is that okay with you?" Roach saw the relief spark in her eyes, and a faint half smile on her lips. Her voice was small and relived when she spoke, making Roach swell inside. "Sure. I can do that." Roach stepped back, trying to ignore the odd look MacTavish was shooting him. Were daggers being shot into his back by the Captains eyes? MacTavish let out a gruff sound again muttering "Good" under his breath and walking out.

As soon as the door was closed and the Captains footfalls faded, Alison spoke to Roach. "That" she said, "Is why I am scared." Roach knew that her voice was light and humorous, but he also knew it was true. He let out a little chuckle, and jerked a thumb towards the door. "He scares me too. Sorry about that, though, with him, you know, spewing words." She shrugged, and Roach got the feeling she was trying to act brave for him. "It's fine. Well, since you are going to be 'watching over me' for the next few days, I guess you can work as my translator too." Now, this made Roach laugh. He let out a small chuckle, and grinned. "Well, sure." He looked at her holding the apple core, and he took it from her. "You were hungry" He said, and threw it in a can by the wall. She shrugged. "Yeah, no kidding." He smiled again, and was about to say something, when he was interrupted by a knock at the door. "Come in" He called. The door opened, and a skull with sunglasses poked its face through to door. "Roach, we are going to have a few runs through the pit. Move your ass down there, and worry about her later." With that, the door was slammed. Roach felt his eyes grow wide, and he found that Alison's were the same. "Wasn't he with you yesterday?" she asked in a timid voice. Roach sighed. "Yeah. He is a big cup of sunshine, just to warn you." She sighed at the sarcasm in his voice. "He is big too. Doesn't seem to friendly either." Roach shrugged. "Not really. But if he heard me say that, he would have my skin." She smirked. "Seems like it. What's the pit?" Roach let out a breath. "It's a pit where we train. Well, not a literal pit. But it is pretty intense." She smiled at that. "Well, I'm sure you can handle it. I don't want him to skin you though, so you had better go." He walked towards the door, saying goodbye. As he closed the door, he called over his shoulder. "I'll probably be back in a hour or two." She nodded, and he shut the door behind him. It would be a long day.

**Yay! Finally a chapter of a length that deserves to be called a chapter. I am happy for once. I have it all typed up on a single document, but with the chapters crap I need to make it different documents. Now, I don't do this for my health. It is for you as a reader! Love you if you bothered to get this far!**


	6. Bit Off

**Here we go! A little bit of real excitement! Well, a little. Disclaimer: I own nothing, except my two OC's. Do I even need to put the disclaimer anymore?**

Roach continued on absentmindedly about his friends and fellow soldiers, and he was surprised to find that the girl actually listened with intent. "Well, to give you a rundown, Archer is a sniper, and he's big, tall, and scary. He is pretty nice, if you don't get him angry. Toad is with him a lot. Toad is cool, and pretty nice, but he's pretty big too. Scarecrow and Ozone are medium sized, I guess you could say, and freakishly strong. Both of them are really nice, and don't really get angry. Now, if you want to talk about two that are good friends, those would be the two, along with Meat and Chemo. You saw Meat yesterday, the one who was with us. He is good, but he is a big prankster, along with Chemo. Chemo is pretty tall, and pretty strong, average around here. He is really good with a knife, I can tell you that. Worm, he is pretty much a lone wolf kind of guy. Nice, but prefers to stick with himself. Royce, and Rocket, they are pretty cool. I don't know them as well as the others, but they are nice and like to chat. Not many people around here are really talkative." He took a breath in, realizing he was actually pretty out of breath from all of that. Alison looked at him with wide eyes. "Wow. You have a lot of people around here, don't you?" Roach nodded, running through all of the faces in his mind. He knew there were a lot of people around here, but he couldn't be more glad he had some of them at his back. He talked a bit about each of their personalities, but he found that he never talked about Ghost, MacTavish, or a few of the higher ranks. He kind of felt like they were watching him, but when he finished, he saw Alison looking at him with a bright face. "Wow. You really are close here, aren't you?" Roach looked up at the ceiling. "I guess so. I mean, you have to be. I am at one point or another trusting these guys with my life. When you are out there, fighting, you don't have time to question trust. You just have to know they have your back and won't let you down, and you know you can't let them down."

Roach paused there, letting his own, hushed words sink in. He was saying things that had never left his mind before, but now were coming into question because of a young girl. He knew what he said was true, and was glad he said it. Alison seemed to have noticed his hushed thinking, because she broke the awkward silence that was around them with a question. "So, what's with all the names? I can guarantee you that no mother on this earth would name their kid 'Worm', 'Toad,' or 'Roach'. So, come on tell me about the names" Her voice had the hint of a beg in it, as if she desperately wanted to know. Roach raised his eyebrows a bit. "Yeah, those aren't our real names. Me, my name is Gary Sanderson. Those names are callsigns, or what we call each other on a mission or something like that. Some names, people just chose for themselves because they are easy to say. Others-" he said, stressing the word, "Were given their names. Unfortunately" he added quietly at the end. Alison smirked at him. "Let me guess. You fall into the category of 'others'" Roach furrowed his brow and nodded. He hated himself for bringing it up. "Yeah. I am in that 'others' category. I got that name because I am so clumsy, and I get injured so much and barely live, they call me Roach, like a cockroach. I am hard to kill." Alison raised her eyebrows, looking at him with an expression on her face that was somewhere between amused and confused. "Well, that is pleasant." Roach nodded. No kidding. He hated the name, deep inside, and he knew that inside him, Gary Sanderson was a different person. Gary Sanderson was a man who was young, childish, and a boy in the clothes of a man. But Roach, he was different. He was the clumsy, foolish, child soldier that was smaller than the rest. He was the one that didn't fit in, the puzzle piece that never managed to fit even if it seemed like it did. He was the base fool, the little guy, the easiest target for pranks and jokes. The one that could never seem to be the strongest or best. Ever. He was overcome by anger.

Roach heard someone calling his name. "Roach!" It was Alison. Roach snapped his senses back to earth, away from his personal anger. He had to shake it off. "Yeah?" Alison looked at him with eyes full of concern. "You okay?" He nodded, breathing deeply. "Yeah." He heard something, a low growl, and realized it was his stomach. He turned red for a moment, and then asked Alison "You hungry?" She nodded. Roach smiled. The apple was from much earlier, and she was surely hungry. He pulled himself to his feet, the chair scraping across the ground. "Well, I can get us some food, if you want." Just then the door opened, and MacTavish stepped in.

Roach stiffened right away, looking at the captain. The tall, brawny man came into the small room, closing the door. His gruff voice spoke to Roach. "It's getting close to lunch, so I figured that we would just get this over with. I am sure you want her to get some rest." MacTavish eyed Alison like she was nothing more than a part of the bed, something that wasn't living. Roach knew what he meant by 'this', and that meant now was the time for Alison to tell them what she knew. "So, Alison, how about you tell us what you heard"

Roach saw her eyes spark with something like fear, and anxiety. Roach sat back down next to her, talking in a soft voice. "Hey, you don't need to worry. Nothing you say will hurt you in any way. I promise. You are perfectly safe." He saw her swallow and take a breath. She started, and Roach listened carefully. "So, I told you, they were coming for my house, I knew it. So, I dragged myself out of my house, and hid where you found me. I was there for maybe a few hours, almost a day, and I thought it was safe. I was about to leave, when I heard them coming again. They came, there were five voices I heard. All of them sounded Russian, and only three of them spoke English. One of them was talking to another, and I remember him saying 'do you have the files?' and the other must have nodded, because the same guy said 'good' a few moments later. The two Russians said some things between themselves, and then moved out of the room. I think that they moved to the rooms in front, to keep watch or something. The three that spoke English, I heard them turn a table over and put something on it. One of them, not the first guy, whistled low, saying "Where did you get that?" and the guy, the first one, saying 'I got it from a house a bit down.' Then the second guy laughed. A third guy started talking about planning another bombing strike, somewhere a few streets down, and the first guy saying 'I think we have them scared enough. We will save our missiles for the trap." Then the second guy laughed, the third guy saying something like 'well, where would the fun be in that? But you, you have a point. We will save them, like I said.' Then, the first guy said something, and I think this is exact, 'well, those 141 soldier freaks will be seeing exactly how strong we are. Let's see how much they are laughing when we are done with them' and then the other two started to laugh. Then, I heard some clicks on a keyboard, and they left for a few hours. I fell asleep, but then woke up to loud laughing. It sounded like they were back. Well, the voice I recognized as the third said 'you know, shepherd is a bitch' the second made a sound that sounded like an agreement, and the first said jokingly 'hey, he is doing the best he can. He has plenty on his hands with that task force of his' and the others laughed again. Then they were quiet again, and I heard them leave a while later. I fell asleep again, but when I woke up, they were back again. The first was the only one who did the talking this time, and they seemed serious. 'So, two days' time, we will plant some fake Intel right after we bomb the place. Then, we will be lying in wait for those 141 goons. Let's see who they send, and hope that we strike gold' and then the other two made small sounds of approval. They left then, and I stayed there in fear that they would come back. I was there for a little over a full day, until you came. That is all I know, all I remember. Is that okay?"


	7. Excitment

**Here we go! A little bit of real excitement! Well, a little. Disclaimer: I own nothing, except my two OC's. Do I even need to put the disclaimer anymore?**

Roach continued on absentmindedly about his friends and fellow soldiers, and he was surprised to find that the girl actually listened with intent. "Well, to give you a rundown, Archer is a sniper, and he's big, tall, and scary. He is pretty nice, if you don't get him angry. Toad is with him a lot. Toad is cool, and pretty nice, but he's pretty big too. Scarecrow and Ozone are medium sized, I guess you could say, and freakishly strong. Both of them are really nice, and don't really get angry. Now, if you want to talk about two that are good friends, those would be the two, along with Meat and Chemo. You saw Meat yesterday, the one who was with us. He is good, but he is a big prankster, along with Chemo. Chemo is pretty tall, and pretty strong, average around here. He is really good with a knife, I can tell you that. Worm, he is pretty much a lone wolf kind of guy. Nice, but prefers to stick with himself. Royce, and Rocket, they are pretty cool. I don't know them as well as the others, but they are nice and like to chat. Not many people around here are really talkative." He took a breath in, realizing he was actually pretty out of breath from all of that. Alison looked at him with wide eyes. "Wow. You have a lot of people around here, don't you?" Roach nodded, running through all of the faces in his mind. He knew there were a lot of people around here, but he couldn't be more glad he had some of them at his back. He talked a bit about each of their personalities, but he found that he never talked about Ghost, MacTavish, or a few of the higher ranks. He kind of felt like they were watching him, but when he finished, he saw Alison looking at him with a bright face. "Wow. You really are close here, aren't you?" Roach looked up at the ceiling. "I guess so. I mean, you have to be. I am at one point or another trusting these guys with my life. When you are out there, fighting, you don't have time to question trust. You just have to know they have your back and won't let you down, and you know you can't let them down."

Roach paused there, letting his own, hushed words sink in. He was saying things that had never left his mind before, but now were coming into question because of a young girl. He knew what he said was true, and was glad he said it. Alison seemed to have noticed his hushed thinking, because she broke the awkward silence that was around them with a question. "So, what's with all the names? I can guarantee you that no mother on this earth would name their kid 'Worm', 'Toad,' or 'Roach'. So, come on tell me about the names" Her voice had the hint of a beg in it, as if she desperately wanted to know. Roach raised his eyebrows a bit. "Yeah, those aren't our real names. Me, my name is Gary Sanderson. Those names are callsigns, or what we call each other on a mission or something like that. Some names, people just chose for themselves because they are easy to say. Others-" he said, stressing the word, "Were given their names. Unfortunately" he added quietly at the end. Alison smirked at him. "Let me guess. You fall into the category of 'others'" Roach furrowed his brow and nodded. He hated himself for bringing it up. "Yeah. I am in that 'others' category. I got that name because I am so clumsy, and I get injured so much and barely live, they call me Roach, like a cockroach. I am hard to kill." Alison raised her eyebrows, looking at him with an expression on her face that was somewhere between amused and confused. "Well, that is pleasant." Roach nodded. No kidding. He hated the name, deep inside, and he knew that inside him, Gary Sanderson was a different person. Gary Sanderson was a man who was young, childish, and a boy in the clothes of a man. But Roach, he was different. He was the clumsy, foolish, child soldier that was smaller than the rest. He was the one that didn't fit in, the puzzle piece that never managed to fit even if it seemed like it did. He was the base fool, the little guy, the easiest target for pranks and jokes. The one that could never seem to be the strongest or best. Ever. He was overcome by anger.

Roach heard someone calling his name. "Roach!" It was Alison. Roach snapped his senses back to earth, away from his personal anger. He had to shake it off. "Yeah?" Alison looked at him with eyes full of concern. "You okay?" He nodded, breathing deeply. "Yeah." He heard something, a low growl, and realized it was his stomach. He turned red for a moment, and then asked Alison "You hungry?" She nodded. Roach smiled. The apple was from much earlier, and she was surely hungry. He pulled himself to his feet, the chair scraping across the ground. "Well, I can get us some food, if you want." Just then the door opened, and MacTavish stepped in.

Roach stiffened right away, looking at the captain. The tall, brawny man came into the small room, closing the door. His gruff voice spoke to Roach. "It's getting close to lunch, so I figured that we would just get this over with. I am sure you want her to get some rest." MacTavish eyed Alison like she was nothing more than a part of the bed, something that wasn't living. Roach knew what he meant by 'this', and that meant now was the time for Alison to tell them what she knew. "So, Alison, how about you tell us what you heard"

Roach saw her eyes spark with something like fear, and anxiety. Roach sat back down next to her, talking in a soft voice. "Hey, you don't need to worry. Nothing you say will hurt you in any way. I promise. You are perfectly safe." He saw her swallow and take a breath. She started, and Roach listened carefully. "So, I told you, they were coming for my house, I knew it. So, I dragged myself out of my house, and hid where you found me. I was there for maybe a few hours, almost a day, and I thought it was safe. I was about to leave, when I heard them coming again. They came, there were five voices I heard. All of them sounded Russian, and only three of them spoke English. One of them was talking to another, and I remember him saying 'do you have the files?' and the other must have nodded, because the same guy said 'good' a few moments later. The two Russians said some things between themselves, and then moved out of the room. I think that they moved to the rooms in front, to keep watch or something. The three that spoke English, I heard them turn a table over and put something on it. One of them, not the first guy, whistled low, saying "Where did you get that?" and the guy, the first one, saying 'I got it from a house a bit down.' Then the second guy laughed. A third guy started talking about planning another bombing strike, somewhere a few streets down, and the first guy saying 'I think we have them scared enough. We will save our missiles for the trap." Then the second guy laughed, the third guy saying something like 'well, where would the fun be in that? But you, you have a point. We will save them, like I said.' Then, the first guy said something, and I think this is exact, 'well, those 141 soldier freaks will be seeing exactly how strong we are. Let's see how much they are laughing when we are done with them' and then the other two started to laugh. Then, I heard some clicks on a keyboard, and they left for a few hours. I fell asleep, but then woke up to loud laughing. It sounded like they were back. Well, the voice I recognized as the third said 'you know, shepherd is a bitch' the second made a sound that sounded like an agreement, and the first said jokingly 'hey, he is doing the best he can. He has plenty on his hands with that task force of his' and the others laughed again. Then they were quiet again, and I heard them leave a while later. I fell asleep again, but when I woke up, they were back again. The first was the only one who did the talking this time, and they seemed serious. 'So, two days' time, we will plant some fake Intel right after we bomb the place. Then, we will be lying in wait for those 141 goons. Let's see who they send, and hope that we strike gold' and then the other two made small sounds of approval. They left then, and I stayed there in fear that they would come back. I was there for a little over a full day, until you came. That is all I know, all I remember. Is that okay?"


	8. Left Hanging

**And so, here we go! I hope you are happy so far! Once again, if you are this far, you have no idea how much I love you. Like, a lot. A lot. **

Roach saw the worry in her eyes, and he didn't know why. She had told them everything, and she didn't need to worry. But Roach was, and when he looked at MacTavish, the man swore loudly. "Shit! Those god damn bastards…" I had heard Alison's story. Makarov and his men were planning a trap for us, today. I looked in panic to MacTavish. He looked like he was in something borderline panic and fear. I hadn't seen that in him before. "Is everything okay, sir?" I asked. He whipped around to face me. "NO, god dammit it isn't okay! There was a bombing in an old warehouse and we got information that they had been there. I sent ghost, worm, and rook just ten minutes ago!" I jumped to my feet, and talked to him in panic. "What? It's a trap! We need to get them out of there, now!" MacTavish stormed out of the room, motioning for me to follow. I didn't even say goodbye to Alison, but now was not the time for something like that. This was urgent. I followed a now running MacTavish to his office. He let me in. "Bloody hell, Roach, we need to get them out of there! They are going right into a trap, and it's my fault for not seeing it. Okay, Roach, you are leading this rescue. Pick two people to go with you." Roach let a stunned expression seep into his face. I would be leading the rescue? Me, the useless little guy? Roach swallowed, knowing he had no time to waste. Roach thought quickly for two people that he would like with him. Toad had real talent with weapons, and Archer had experience. They were the two he would choose. "Archer and Toad, sir, if that's okay." MacTavish nodded, hastily checking his computer for something.

Roach stood there for a moment, waiting for his next instruction. "We are going to have a chopper ready in five minutes. Get those two, gear up, get ready to head out." Roach nodded, turning to sprint from the office. He ran to the mess hall, knowing that is where most of the people would be at this point. It was lunch, after all. He looked to the table where Toad and Archer sat together, and sprinted over. Archer tilted his large head to look at him. "Where's the fire, Roach?" He spat out his answer to him right away. "Ghost, Worm, and Rook are in trouble! I am leading a rescue mission, and I chose you and Toad to come with me. Will you?" Archer and Toad jumped to their feet in unison. "Hell yes!" Archer said, and Roach spoke hastily to him. "Well, we need to gear up, a chopper will be ready in five minutes" Archer nodded, and we sprinted away. Roach prayed that Ghost was okay.

Ghost scanned the area. They had gotten off the chopper a few minutes ago, and now were approaching the warehouse. The area around them was filled with craters, a reminder of the damage that Makarov loved to cause. Well, Ghost knew it worked. They bombed an area, cleared it out, and set up there for a while. At least, that is what they were doing lately. Ghost held the gun tightly in his hands, and scanned the area with his eyes. He waved his hand back at Worm and Rook, motioning for them to move forward. The warehouse looked partially crumpled in on corner, collapsed in due to a missile dropping from the sky only hours earlier. Ghost neared the warehouse, quiet footsteps. He had a nagging feeling in his gut, one he knew shouldn't be there. He had only felt this once before, and that was one of the worst days of his life. He brought his hand up to his face for a moment, tracing over his mask where he knew the scars were. He shook the thoughts away. This would not be a repeat of that fateful day. He neared the warehouse, feeling the eerie silence around them. Something wasn't right. They entered through a cracked door, the light of midday shining in bright into the usually damp and dark warehouse. The threesome entered the large room, sweeping from side to side. It appeared to be clear. Ghost whispered to Rook. "Rook, stay by the door and keep a lookout." The man nodded, stationing himself by the door. Ghost moved ahead to the shadows in the far corner. He moved towards them, and slowly, quietly he approached. Suddenly, he heard a gunshot, and then heard Rook cry out. Ghost whipped around, and he saw that a few men, Russians, were creeping into the warehouse. One of them had his gun pointed at Rook. Ghost looked in despair at Rook, who was lying on the ground, blood pooling beneath his body. The man smirked as he saw Ghost freeze, and Worm as well. Ghost felt despair creep in.

Ghost looked at the man with hate and contempt, but kept his eyes slowly sweeping side to side, looking at the advancing force of men. They had two standing now, and there were ten against them. Worm looked at him, and he seemed to know that Ghost knew it was hopeless at this point. The man pointing the gun a Rook spoke with a thick accent. "So, how about we set our guns down and the one here doesn't die. Well, not right now anyway." Ghost murmured "Shit" but set his weapon slowly on the ground. This day was shaping up to be quite a day, and the feeling in his gut had been right. They had walked right into a trap. Worm was the next to place his weapon on the ground. The man smiled even wider. "Good, very good. Now, how about we take off those grenades you Americans love." Ghost felt a muscle in his face twitch as he pulled off pretty much every weapon he had on him, and let his knife clatter to the ground. Worm did the same. The man chuckled. "Now, we are going to step away from those piles of assorted weapons and come towards us." Ghost felt his body turn inward. This was a defeat, and he knew it. Now, they were dead for sure. MacTavish would realize it as some point, but not soon enough.

In defeat, Ghost stepped forward, hands up. He had been in a position so close to this at one point. So close. He glanced over at Worm, who had a look of shock on his face. Ghost realized that no one had seen him give up before. Ever. He was Ghost. Well, right now, Ghost did not need to let Rook or Worm die. He continued to step forward until two of the men with guns rushed forward, grabbed him, and kicked him to the floor. Ghost didn't bother trying to resist. He let himself be beat down with painful blows and his hands bound behind his back. By the sounds of it, Worm was suffering the same. He felt bad for the man. Ghost had been tortured before, and so had Rook, but never Worm. He had been lucky. Rook remained lying on the ground, bleeding from a wound Ghost could not see, but it must be in a spot that bled heavily. The man laughed, moving away and letting another man take his place over Rook. Ghost heard the sound of metal scraping cement and when he lifted his head, he saw a metal chair being dragged to the center of the room. Ghost swore.

Ghost felt arms of iron grab his own, dragging him towards the chair. He knew he should have fought, kicked out, but he felt on the brink of collapse. They walked into a trap, for god's sake, and now were going to be tortured. Ghost knew that they would never get any information out of them, he was confident in that, but he was worried about Rook. The blood kept pooling and the man had stopped moving for the most part. Ghost felt himself thrown back into the chair. Another rope was used to tie is ankles to the legs of the chair, and Ghost felt with dejection the tightness in which they were done. The man who had been smiling, and who seemed to be leading the show, was not a familiar face to Ghost. He had to be another one of the goonies that Makarov loves to send out. The man walked close to him, two of the men close by his sides. "Ah, I bet you wonder who I am. Well, I know who you are. The other two, no. I will have to find that out from you. But, there is only one in the whole task force with a ghost mask. You are Ghost." Ghost felt shock the man knew his name, and his question, but he didn't show it. He kept his body tense, and he kept looking at the man. HE was maybe a little under six feet with thick hair, and a grin with malice in it. The man kept coming forward until he was only a foot from Ghost, maybe less. The man continued, but it was more of a thoughtful murmur than a declaration. It was almost as if he only wanted Ghost to hear. "Well, I know your name, and know I will get the names of the others from you, but I have a problem. I knew you by the mask. It hides your face so well, I find." The man walked a short step closer. Ghost felt anger and fury and pure defiance well inside of him. He knew what the man was going to do. The Russian stepped a little closer, practically whispering in Ghosts ear. "You shouldn't try and hide. I know you cant. I know about you. Let's see what is under your mask, Ghost" and with that, Ghost screamed as the man's hands went towards his face, fingers like greedy monsters.

**Left you with a little cliffie! Not a big deal though, as the next chapter is already ready. So, read on and be happy : ) I know this was short, but I wanted to end here, so, yeah. This was not my best writing, I know. Sorry!**


	9. See Your Face

**Okay, why bother reading the note when you are dying to know what is happening!**

Ghost screamed loudly as the glasses were first ripped from his face, then a rush of air as the balaclava was torn from it as well. He felt the cold air kiss his skin in a way it rarely did, caressing the skin and rushing over his scars. He roared at the man, throwing curses and profanities in a way that had never been heard before. The man only chuckled as he threw the mask to the ground by the glasses, and ground them with his foot. Ghost heard the dark tinted lenses being crushed under the booted foot on the man, and he screamed out yet another insult. The man murmured. "Go ahead, Ghost. I see your face now. Just keep screaming. It doesn't change anything." Ghost screamed a few more profanities before letting his chin drop on his chest. He allowed himself to screw his eyes tightly shut. His breathing was heavy, and he was shaking. He didn't know why. This felt like nothing he had ever been through before. He brought his head up, looking past the man. Worm was looking at him with wide eyes. Ghost felt shame as the man continued to gaze at him with shock filled eyes. Ghost had no reason to be ashamed, but he didn't know that. He had a handsome face, dark skinned like the rest of him, with a sturdy jaw and nose that appeared to have been broken many times. It was quite a handsome face in itself, but it was marred with long straight scars, one over his cheek, the other over his eye to his jawbone. There were other scars, but none as prominent as those. He hung his head again as the man laughed. Ghost thought he had suffered before, but this was humiliation.

Roach looked at Archer and Toad and they neared the location of the warehouse. Archer yelled to him over the sound of the blades on the chopper. "ETA one minute!" Roach looked down at his gun, loaded and ready to fire, and then at the approaching smoke. The bombs had been dropped only a few hours earlier, and some of the craters were still smoking. The chopper lowered towards the ground, and a few feet from the ground, the three men jumped out. Roach had his eyes locked on the warehouse, hoping to find his friend inside. He hadn't let himself admit it until today, but no matter how harsh Ghost was on him, they were pretty good friends. They had each other's backs, every day of the week. Ghost had saved his ass more times than he cared to count, and now it was time for him to repay the favor. Roach, Archer, and Toad picked their way around the craters and smoking masses of rubble, heading silent as cats towards the warehouse. Suddenly, a deep scream came from the warehouse. Roach jumped. It was Ghost! He looked at Archer and Toad, their faces confirming his thoughts. They continued to walk forward, getting closer and closer towards the warehouse, until Roach was the first to arrive at the open door.

Roach peeked his head through, and to his horror, he saw about ten men with guns in the warehouse. He was aware of a man tied to a chair in the middle of a room, but did a quick scan of the room. He saw three men with guns standing over a man, quite close to them, bleeding. Roach paled when he saw the man's face. It was Rook. Roach forced his eyes to move another direction, just to the left of Rook, bound and slightly bloody was Worm. Roach was confused. He saw Rook and Worm, and the man being tortured, but he could not see Ghost. He heard Ghost swear. He turned his head to the man in the metal chair again, and was surprised to find Ghost's voice coming out of his mouth. Roach was shocked. That was Ghost! The man with the scarred but square face, was his partner whom he had never seen for real before. Roach had no time to waste though. The man Ghost was swearing at was holding a knife, and it had already torn a ribbon red line through Ghost's cheek.

Roach turned around, looking at Archer and Toad. He whispered his findings. "There are ten men, nine of them armed, the other is in the middle of the room with Ghost. Five are to the right and four are to the left. I will go left, you two go right. Take them all out, but be careful about the man in the middle. Only shoot if you have a clear shot! Ghost is the one in the chair." They nodded, and snuck in. They got close to the men, very close, before all hell broke loose. Roach started to spray bullets from his gun, hitting each of the four men he was close to in the back and watching them fall to the ground without ever having a chance to fire back. Once he saw the last hit the ground he turned around to find that the other five had indeed been taken care of by Archer and Toad. The man in the center of the room swore, and stepped behind Ghost. The shiny knife blade was pressed to his partner's neck, and Roach yelled at him. "Hey! Back away from him!" The Russian laughed. "Not a chance." Roach cast a look at Ghost. His friend's brown and green eyes looked at him in shame and humiliation. Had Ghost actually thought that they would think of him differently because of the scars on his face? Roach felt his face twitch. He didn't think that Ghost was like that. He thought his friend had confidence, but no, he was a coward hiding his face…

Roach snapped his attention back to the situation. He yelled to the man once again. "Back away from him!" The Russian much have known the didn't have a clear shot, because he didn't move. "You miss by half an inch, your friend here dies. Ghost dies instead of me. Well, I am sure you will kill me then, but, he will be gone too. You will have failed. How would that feel?" Roach hissed, and looked at Archer. The man was trying to move around to get a clear shot, but the man turned to face him. "Don't think I don't see you. I will kill him, you know." Roach cursed. This was harder than he thought it would be. The man in the middle must have realized something, and he seemed to muse out loud. "Well, you know what? I'm screwed any way you put it. You try and shoot me but kill him, you still shoot me. I kill him, you shoot me. Or, by some miracle, you just shoot me. But the knife is precarious. You shoot me, I am sure he dies. So, either way, he is dead too. Well, boys, in that case, let's get Ghost's death over with first. I cried out "NO!" As the Russian raised the knife slightly away from Ghost's neck and prepared to plunge it down.

Roach heard the gunshot and saw the man fall to the ground with that sick grin on his face, blood pooling beneath his head. I turned. Worm, with bound hands, had taken a dead man's gun and shot. I rushed forward, letting my gun fall to my side. I skidded up to Ghost, not even bothering to talk as I pulled my knife out of its sheath and cut through the ropes on his ankles. I went to his hands, and cut through the bindings. Ghost was the first to speak. "Thanks." Roach smiled. "No problem" but he felt it turn to a frown very abruptly. His eyes saw a lump of cloth and shattered glass on the ground next to the chair. Roach saw that Ghost had seen it as well, and Ghost even made a lunge for it, but Roach was there first. He held up the mask, brushing away the dark red tinted glass and letting it fall to the ground. Roach felt anger bubble up in him. Ghost stood there, staring him straight on, a thin trail of blood on his face. Roach began to yell. "What the hell is the matter with you? I looked up to you, for God's sake, and I never questioned the mask thing! I never did because you were brave, and scary sometimes, but you were strong! You had confidence, and acted like nothing could ever take you down! What did I think that was wrong? I put up with your beating on me, your yelling, but that was because I wanted to be like you! Brave believing in myself! I thought that the girl Alison was a step towards that, because for the first time, I had someone trust me. Now, I don't know what I am. I wanted to be like you, but the last thing I want to be is a coward who hides my face because he is afraid of what others would think!" and with that, Roach ripped the mask of his friend and superior, dropping his gun to the ground, he bolted away at a sprint through the door, not wanting to see anyone anymore.

Ghost called out after Roach as his young friend bolted away through the open door. He tried to go after him, but Archer held him back. "Hey, let him go. You really fucked up, my friend" Ghost looked at Archer, his face and emotions crumpling. Archer looked at him with a combination of annoyance, and possibly anger. "I have never seen your face before. I thought the same thing as Roach there. You were brave and confident. You are a coward who hides his face. I am disgusted, and I am sorry to say that to a superior, but it is true." Ghost felt devastation in himself. His rough voice came out softer and more confused that it normally was. "I don't see why that makes so much difference, I hid my scars. I had no idea the little bugger looked up to me so much, and that this would affect him so much.." Ghost trailed off there, in true puzzlement. He had no idea the younger man had looked up to him. Archer looked at him like he was crazy. "How could you not see that? He followed you like a lost puppy and copied your every move! Man, I can't believe I didn't see through your shit act. Now, why don't you get the chopper and get Rook and Worm? I'm going to find the kid you just crushed." With that, Archer jogged out of the room.

Ghost was crestfallen. He kept staring at the door, and the thoughts were like fire in his mind. He didn't know that he was looked up to like that. He didn't know that so many people thought of him like that, looked up to him, and thought he was brave. He couldn't believe that was all falling apart because he wanted to keep his face hidden. He kneeled down, picked up the two torn halves of the skull, and placed them in his pocket. He closed his eyes for a moment, then turned to Toad. The man met his eyes for a second before simply shaking his head, and turning away to help Rook and Worm. Ghost felt like he was alone then, encased in ice. He had seen wars beyond anything, but here, because of his scars, he was falling apart. He raised a hand to his face. The cut the man had torn into his cheek stung, but he hardly felt it. Instead, he felt the pain of Roach. He saw that kid like an overly eager kind of puppy, always wanting to please. He didn't believe he had let so many people down already, without even making it back to base. MacTavish was the only one who had ever seen him without his mask. Now, it was destroyed, and everyone would see him for who he truly was. A man, traumatized by war, his face torn by scars, and a coward. Ghost knew his face had a look of pain on it. Usually it would be covered by his mask and he could let his face be overcome with the emotions he wanted, because he knew they wouldn't be seen. Now, he was alone and visible.

**So, here we go! Was that good! I think that it was one of my better chapters. Maybe. I don't know. I have this thing where I write to much about thoughts and emotions rather than action, which is what CoD is supposed to be about. Sigh. I need to work on my writing. **


	10. Due Sorry

**So, this is a little bit longer than most I have done so far. It has lots of emotion in it, and an apology, so be happy! Thank you for reading this far!**

Roach didn't know where he was going. He just knew he was running. The area around the warehouse had some light tree cover, so that is where Roach went. He kept dodging bark and trunks, panting in rage, and sometimes, sadness. Once he got to the middle of rather thick cover, he shimmied up on of the thickest and tallest trees, settling himself on one of the high branches. He was confused and angry. He had thought Ghost was like an idol, a hero he looked up to. Every time they went on recon together, Roach noticed the bravery and strong willed way that Ghost plunged into the fray, not worried about his safety, only because he trusted himself. Roach had thought that grinning skull practically shitted self-confidence, and the mask was something to strike fear into others, not hide the scars that Ghost didn't want to face. He let his back rest against the trunk, and rested there for a moment, panting with emotions. He felt like a child running away from his problems, but until this point he had followed Ghost in what he did. What could he do now? He drew a breath in, and closed his eyes. He wanted to think.

It wasn't long that Roach was alone before he heard the crashing footsteps. He heard a familiar voice calling his name, and to his relief, it wasn't Ghost. "Roach, where are you? I know you went this way. It's me, Archer!" Roach waited until the man came into the clearing just below the tree before he called attention to himself. He broke off a branch and dropped it down, watching Archer jump as it hit the ground heavily inches from him. This got a smile from Roach as Archer looked up into the tree. "Roach, come down, please!" Sighing, Roach slid down the tree. "What is it?" He asked the sniper. Archer slung his arm around Roaches shoulder. "Listen, kid, I know he was like an idol to you. I looked up to him too. It was a surprise to us, and I know how you feel. But we can't all run from our troubles. We have to face them and get over them. Besides, the chopper will be here soon. We don't want to miss our only ride back." Roach nodded, as he knew what Archer said was true. They began to walk back to where the chopper would be, and Roach heard himself burst out. "I just can't believe it! He always was so brave!" Archer frowned, and Roach listened closely to his words. "Listen, please, Roach, get this straight. I am extremely pissed at him for being a coward like he is, but that doesn't mean he isn't brave. Does the fact that he hides his face from the world undo the things he has done? Does it undo the brave tasks he has gone through and the battles he has fought? No. I know you are upset, but don't beat him up too much, okay?" Roach nodded, taking a deep breath as the trees thinned.

Ghost walked towards the helicopter that had just landed, and was following after Toad and Worm, who were carrying Rook. He had his face tilted down, but brought it up just in time to see Archer and Roach walking in from the tree line. He let his face drop down again as he clambered into the metal beast, trying to avoid all the glances he was getting. Once Roach finally crawled in, Ghost tried to watch the scenery around them they had around them as they took off. Toad was the one closest to him at this point, but he was still a considerable distance. Ghost tried to bite back a scream of exasperation. He wasn't a different man! He wanted to tell them he was sorry, but he knew somehow that whatever he said wouldn't change anything. They had marked him as a coward and weren't going to take it back.

Roach tried to avoid looking at Ghost for the whole twenty minute ride back to base. He didn't want to look at the man again, but somehow he felt his eyes drawn in that direction. Ghost was sitting, hunched and alone, on the other side of the chopper. Roach only caught his face once, and it was a miserable broken mess. For a moment, Roach wanted to say something, but then took it back. He didn't want to talk to the coward.

The chopper landed on the helipad at base, Archer and Worm helping unload Rook, while Toad dealt with the weapons. Roach simply shot Ghost a frustrated look and slid out. Ghost felt his face, fingers tracing gently over the scars that were engraved there. He had to prove to them he was not a coward. He had to show them he was the same man without a mask that he was with one. He stepped out of the chopper, his booted feet hitting the hard packed dirt. He walked to the mess hall, and on the way there, he bumped into Ozone. The man looked at him with confusion on his face. "Who the hell are you?" Ghost swallowed, and spoke. "It's me" Ozone took a step back. "Hell, Ghost, that really you? You shitting me or something?" Ghost glowered at him, trying to maintain his usual effect on the men, but it failed. "Yeah, it's me. What it to you?" Ozone backed up a bit, the look in his eyes accusatory. "Nothing." And with that, Ozone walked away quickly, as if something was on his tail. Ghost sighed. That went well. He thought to himself. If a laid back man like Ozone had that reaction, he could only dream of the others. Ghost stormed away to the barracks, thankfully not bumping into anyone else. Ghost climbed onto his top bunk, and acted like a child, jamming his face into his pillow, trying not to cry.

Roach stormed off to MacTavish's office, and knocked once. He heard the captain's gruff voice "Come in" and Roach did. The captain must have seen the look on Roach's face right away, as he immediately asked "What wrong? What happened?" Roach swallowed. "Rescue went according to plan, sir. Rook was shot, but is in the infirmary now. Worm is fine, and Ghost was on the verge of torture, but we escaped with him only getting a cut on his cheek." As Roach said this, MacTavish raised an eyebrow. "His cheek?" Roach swallowed. "Yes sir, his cheek. And, no disrespect sir, but why didn't you tell us that Ghost is a fucking coward?" Roach watched as MacTavish leaned forward, putting his elbows on the desk. "And why do you say that, Roach?" Roach felt his brow furrow. He stopped speaking in such a formal tone out of anger. "His face. His fucking mask, that's what. It came off when he was tortured, and now we see his face. He wore it because of his scars. He was acting like the tough guy, the hero, the one I wanted to look up to, and now I find the whole time he has been shitting us. A coward hiding his face behind a skull. I looked up to him, and now I know it was all an act." MacTavish looked at him with a hard glare. "Now, Roach" he began coldly. "I am going to pretend you never said any of that. For your information, he was never a coward and will never be one. He is still the same man without his mask as he is with one. Now, get out of my sight." Roach did, making sure to slam the door behind him.

Ghost sat on his bunk, his face ground into the pillow. Somewhere deep inside, he might have been trying to stop breathing, but the thin cotton didn't allow for it. He heard a banging sound, and then MacTavish's voice. "Ghost, I know you're in there. Open this door! That's an order!" Ghost groaned, pulling himself out of bed and to the door. He swung the door open, glowering. "What do you want? Come here to make fun of me too?" MacTavish returned his glare, stepping into the room and closing the door. "Ghost, what happened? Why the fuck are you breaking down all of a sudden? You aren't acting like the man I know you are." Ghost scowled. "What man am I? A coward who hides his face?" MacTavish reached out and slapped his face. Ghost didn't see it coming, and he didn't know how to react. "Simon, pull yourself together! You did wear that to hide your face, and you fucking know it! But that doesn't make you a coward. I know you. You are the first into battle, the first to sight the enemy. You are the one that runs out of ammo first because you are out there saving our asses. You are not a coward, but a man full of courage, and you can't wallow in here." Ghost felt a shock at his core, to actually hear his captain, and friend say such a thing. "Night is almost here, so I will allow you to stay in here. Prepare yourself for the day tomorrow. And get ready for Roach. He is pretty upset. I expect to see you running those men in the pit at 06 hours. Understand?" Ghost nodded. He knew the captain was right. He just stood there as the man walked out of the room.

Roach walked to the infirmary and entered the room that Alison was in. She let out a small sound of surprise when he walked in. "Hey, knock!" He smiled a weak smile. She looked at him. "What's wrong?" he heard her ask. He figured that it was fine to tell her. "You know the other guy with the skull mask? Ghost?" She nodded, speaking. "Yeah, he's freaking scary! The whole mask and shade get up is freaky, and he is killer tall and strong. Oh, and if I can, I would like to talk to him for a bit." Roach looked at her, surprised. "Why?" She shrugged. "I wouldn't think that you would ask that. I thought you would know. He saved my life. No matter how much he freaks me out, I want to thank him. I thanked that other guy, Meat, earlier, when he came to talk to me." Roach sighed. "Well, the thing is, no one has ever seen his face. Ever" She looked at him with wide eyes. "Ever?" He confirmed with a nod. "Ever. But today, on the mission, we found him being tortured." Alison let out a gasp, and he regretted saying that. Was she ready to hear something like this? But he heard her ask a question full of concern. "Is he okay?" He grin-grimaced. "Yeah, but they cut his cheek. To get his cheek, the mask came off. His face is a mass of scars, and that's why he hid it. A coward to hide from showing us his face." To his surprise, she looked at him with angry eyes. "Why do you say he's a coward? Why isn't it okay to hide his face?"

Roach sighed. He knew she wouldn't understand. "You wouldn't understand." He murmured. She crossed her arms, Roach noting the IV was gone now. "I have heard you talk about him a lot in the little over a day I have known you. You thought he was brave, and monster brave at that. You looked up to him. Now, just because he didn't show you his scars, you run?" Roach looked at her, shell shocked. How could she say, much less understand stuff like this? He was about to speak, but she started up again. "No, don't speak. You thought he was your friend, and just because he has some scars, you run? Maybe that's why he wore it in the first place. So cowards like you wouldn't run from him. Maybe, they are personal and painful, so he doesn't want to be reminded of them. You are a freaking judgmental jerk for labeling him like that. I would have thought you were different!"

Roach was stunned. He wouldn't have wanted to think of it like that! Maybe she was right, in a way. Maybe he hid it so people like him wouldn't want to react. Roach cleared his throat. "So, you think he wore it for the rest of us, rather than himself?" Alison nodded. "What do you think? You don't think he is the kind of guy to run from his troubles, so he probably isn't. Maybe those scars are something he wants to forget, and that mask or whatever helps him." Roach stoked his chin, deep in thought. What if what a little girl, who knew nothing about him or Ghost, really, was right? He wondered for a moment if what she had said was as really as obvious as it seemed. He hoped it wasn't, because he needed to talk to Ghost. Maybe apologize.

True to Roaches thoughts, a few moments later, Alison piped up again. "You are going to apologize, right?" He looked at her, and she had a glowering accusatory look in her eyes. He held up his hands in defeat. "Fine. I'll apologize." He grumbled. It didn't help when he was getting told what to do by a thirteen year old. He got up. "So, I'll go find Ghost, apologize, and send him down here so you can thank him. How does that sound?" Alison looked at the clock on the wall. "I don't know. It's getting pretty late. Maybe tomorrow?" Roach should have known that she, as a kid, would need some more sleep than the rest of them. While it was relatively early for Roach, he had had almost a year now of staying up till midnight with drinking and poker only to wake up the next morning five hours later. He smiled. "Sure, no problem. So, see you tomorrow then?" She nodded, and he walked out, closing the door with a gentle click. Roach took a breath and leaned his back up against the wall, putting the palms of his hands over his eyes and sitting there, thinking. He knew what he had to do, and he knew Alison was right. He had to apologize.

Roach worked his way to the barracks, taking some congratulations on the mission, and finally arrived at the door to his and Ghost's room. He grabbed the handle, to find that it was locked. He wiggled it a little, then knocked on the door. No answer. Roach went to pounding on the door, yelling as best he could. "Ghost, listen, open up! I need to talk to you, and get some sleep!" He waited a moment, hoping the door would open. It stayed sealed shut. Roach slammed his fist onto the door. "Open up, God dammit! I want to apologize! Come on, man!" Roach ran a hand through his messy hair, praying that the door would open. It didn't. Anger came up inside of him again, a feeling he was not accustomed to yet had happened often lately. "Ghost, you can't hide in there forever!" And with that, and a well-placed kick, the door flew open.

Roach stormed in, his eyes flying to the top bunk. Ghost was there, head jammed under a pillow. Roach reached up and grabbed it, pulling it away from Ghost. This was a move he never normally would have tried, but today he was desperate. Had it been a normal day, grabbing that pillow would have been saying you have a death wish. Today, all that happened was Ghost growled through the mattress "give that back, bug" Roach threw the pillow on his own bed. Ghost jumped up in his bed, showing his face, an angry mask. "You want to talk, huh?" The older man yelled. Roach opened his mouth, but Ghost wasn't done yet. "You came here to insult me, didn't you? Call me a coward for covering my face? Well, look at it! I'm not hiding any fucking longer! Are you happy?"

Roach was scared. He had seen Ghost angry, furious, even. But never as upset as he was right now. Ghost swung his legs over the edge of the bunk and put his head in his hands. Roach backed away slowly, placing his hand on the door. "Wait" Roach turned around, his body tense. Ghost spoke again, but this time, in a voice of sheer exhaustion. "Listen, bug. I didn't know you looked up to me. I was stupid enough not to see that. I know I let you down. I'm sorry." Roach stood still. He swallowed, unsure of how to respond., When he found the right words, they wouldn't stop coming. "No, I'm sorry. It was wrong of me to call you a coward. I just assumed you wore that to make us scared. When I saw your scars, I saw nothing but my idol falling to his knees in front of me. I'll admit it; I lost it. When Archer found me and I told him what I thought, he reminded me your mask coming off doesn't undo the things you have done. It doesn't change you. But I was still angry. Then I talked to that girl. I told her the same thing, and she got angry too. She shot me with the logic that Archer did, and maybe the fact that you weren't hiding yourself. I reacted the way I did when I saw the, Maybe you covered them for people like me who are the real cowards."

Roach drew in a deep breath, unbelieving that he had just admitted all of that. What was this, share our feelings in kindergarten? To Roach's relief, Ghost didn't snap. Instead, the man raised his scarred face. It wasn't smiling. Well, it wasn't frowning either. It was a look of plain indifference. "Roach, you are right. I was afraid to let people see my face. I was afraid they would run away, or ask questions that would bring up memories I prefer to have hidden. Now, it's just coming back to hurt me. Roach smiled. "Naw, I would say you are scarier without it." Ghost glowered at him briefly, but broke into a small smile. Roach had never seen him smile. It was odd, but not unpleasant or unwelcome. Ghost looked at him, asking in a quiet tone. "So, now that we have this sorted out, can I trust you have me back?" Roach shrugged. "Never didn't."

Roach turned to the door, and started to open it. Ghost called to him one last time. "Yeah?" Ghost looked at him with a slightly raised eyebrow. "Not that I'm not glad we got that over with, but please promise me we won't have to go through this heart to heart shit again unless it is a matter of life or death? You know what, never mind. Just, never again, okay?" Roach smiled. "Wouldn't dream of it." And then, he exited the room.


	11. A Full Day

**This is a short Authors note.**

Roach was glad he made up with Ghost. He had walked down the hall and down to the rec room. He opened the door, and to his surprise, he found no one was drinking. Rather, they were just sitting and talking. When Roach walked in, most of them looked at him. Meat was the first to speak up. "So, his mask came off. What's he like?" Roach narrowed his eyes, shooting daggers at Meat. "It doesn't matter. You will find out tomorrow morning." There was silence in the room for a moment before Scarecrow piped up. "So, why did he hide his face? Why was he a coward?" Roach let out an annoyed hissing sound. "Why do you guys assume he is a coward. You all need to stop assuming. He isn't a coward." Roach soon found himself preaching the same thing Archer had told him, earning an approving glance from the older sniper. "Just because his face isn't hidden anymore doesn't mean that he isn't the same man. He is still Ghost, still that badass motherfucker we know and love. Don't think that now, just because you can see his face, doesn't mean he can't kick your ass any and every day of the week"

Roach finished his speech there, meeting each and every man's eyes. A few of them had a slightly confused look on their face, others were making nearly imperceptible nods. Meat had looked confused, but when Roach had finished, he got up and put a thick barrel arm around the smaller man's shoulder. Meat spoke to the whole crowd now. "This little bugger is right. Ghost can whip our asses into next week. All of us, you included, huh Roach?" Roach didn't know where he was going with that, a confused look coming over his face, his eyebrows knotting together. "Of course he can…" Meat smiled. "And so can everyone else here." And quickly, before Roach could register what was going on, Meat went down on one knee, grabbed the bottoms of Roach's cargo pants, and gave a quick tug. This action gave the whole group a view of Roach's red and white checkered boxers.

Roach let out a yell as Meat darted away through the rec room doors. Roach grabbed his pants and yanked them up, bursting out of the door after Meat.

The chase was futile, and Roach knew it, but he gave Roach a good run for his money before the man managed to slip away in the dark. Roach sighed. It was getting late. He walked back to the barracks and went into his and Ghost's room, opening the somewhat broken door. Ghost was lying on the top bunk, looking up at the ceiling, sleeping. His arms were folded across his chest, and he was still without a pillow. Roach let a grin cross his face before crawling into his own bunk and falling asleep.

Roach woke very early the next morning, at around four thirty. Roach lay in his bunk, thinking about yesterday in the rec room. He knew that with his speech he had convinced a few people, but he could tell by their expressions that they believed what he said. They thought Ghost was the same. Others, such as Ozone and Meat, had lost all respect for the man. Roach prayed that it didn't stay that way. He hoped that this morning in The Pit Ghost worked them until someone either puked or passed out, just to show them he still had it. He hoped that Ghost yelled at them like they were dogs. Roach sat on these thoughts for maybe half an hour. It didn't seem too long to him because they were such large thoughts, leaving time a bit distorted. He heard the sound of cloth on cloth, and knew Ghost was waking up. He listened to the man take a deep breath and slide down the bunk, landing gently on the floor. He heard a soft shuffle as Ghost got into his clothes for the day, and once the noise stop, Roach whispered quietly into the dark. "Hey, Ghost?" The voice that returned had the same hushed tone. "Yeah, bug?" Roach closed his eyes. "Kill us out there today." Ghost didn't reply, and soon Roach heard the sound of the door closing.

Roach got up a little while after Ghost left, pulling on light cargo shorts and a t shirt, hearing his dog tags clack against each other. He walked out of the dark room into the dimly lit hallway. The rest of base seemed to be sleeping, but Roach knew it wouldn't remain that way for much longer. That was how it worked around here. Late nights, early mornings. Roach didn't mind a bit, in fact, he liked it. That was not why he was up early this morning, though. He needed to think, relax a bit. Roach had this thing for trees, and sitting in them, so he pulled his body up into the thick branches of an oak on the edge of camp. Through the dark light of early morning, Roach was able to see the faint outlines of each building that hugged close to the ground, still and silent at this time of day. Roach leaned his back up against the trunk of the tree and let a smile of content cross his face.

Roach had the luxury of watching the sun begin to creep over the mountains, flooding the skies with deep hues of pink and orange. Roach fixed his eyes down on the camp which was beginning to show some movement. It was nice up here, and it would be hell down there, but it would be worth it if Ghost was able to cling to his reputation. Roach made his way down the tree and jogged lightly to the mess hall. When Roach opened the door to the mess hall, he noticed how many people were up already. It was odd, but then again, some days were like that.

By the looks on their faces, Roach guessed they were waiting to see Ghost. His spot in the mess hall was unoccupied. Roach checked the time quickly, noting that he had to be at the pit in ten minutes, sharp. Looking at how few others were eating, he decided to skip breakfast all together. He didn't want to be the first who's breakfast came back up in The Pit. Roach headed out of the doors, once again without a word to anybody. He could feel it in the air, to his dismay. Today was going to be quite a warm one.

Roach was standing stiff in line, ten minutes later, along with the rest of the men on base. It was exactly oh six hundred hours, and Ghost was not on time for the first time in history. That was what worried Roach. What if he was a no show? What if he proved he was the coward everyone thought he was? Well, just as the thought slipped into Roach's mind, everyone heard a familiar voice yell at them. "Why can't you bitches stand still?" Everyone froze, Roach more rigid than a board, and he had to suppress a smile. That was the voice of the Ghost he knew was still there, the one that everyone doubted. A familiar shape stepped from the shadows of the building next to them, his strong and bulky form one that everyone recognized. That body belonged to Ghost.

Roach watched as the man stepped full out into the early morning light. Roach knew the face by now, seeing it a few times already. The other men, well, half of them never had. There were a few noises up and down the line, but they faded as daggers shot from Ghost's eyes. Roach was tempted to smile. This Ghost, the one where you could see his scarred and scowling face clearly to match his screaming voice, was possibly more scary that with his mask. Meat, who was next to him, flinched as the barrage of insults and profanities began.

Roach and the others had endured more than ten minutes of yelling and swearing, constant insults, some targeting their manhood, others their actions, and others yet, their appearance. It was quite a contrast from the bright and sunny morning it was shaping up to be, but it was welcome. As the barrage of insults was over, they were plunged headfirst into the Pit, like lab mice stuck on a never ending treadmill.

Roach fell to the ground out of exhaustion three hours later. He had been practically running at a sprint that whole time, and doing various exercises like jumping, climbing, pushups, sit ups, and shooting. They had done the latter, and after two hours, Worm passed out, and Toad lost the breakfast that Roach never ate. Ghost was working them harder than he ever had before. In fact, he was pushing them far over what usually happened on the recon missions. The scary thing was, it wasn't Ghost who finally allowed them to stop. He would have kept them working in the increasingly warm weather, but MacTavish had come to the rescue, telling Ghost it was enough for the day. Roach was one of the last to fall to the shade under the tree. Ozone and Chemo were there, panting in the shade. Ozone commented sourly "He was such a bitch today. Does he want us to die?" Chemo made an annoyed sound. "No fuck, dumbass." Roach let his head rest on the ground, closing his eyes for a sweet, brief moment.

Roach had been resting only for the briefest of moments when he heard a soft voice call his name. "Hey Roach!" He opened his eyes and sat up on his elbows, and looked into the face of a smiling girl. "Alison?" He asked in a weary voice. She smiled even wider. "Yeah, it's me. I was watching you guys run that course. You are amazing! My mom never liked when I swore, but you guys can to some crazy shit ass stuff." This brought a chuckle to Roach's parched lips. "So? You're up?" She shrugged, waving one of the crutches she was supporting herself with. "I guess you could say that. I'm glad, though. It was pretty boring just sitting there." Roach shrugged, suddenly noticing her hair was shiny and brushed out, her face clean, and he looked her over once. She had on a pair of short jeans, a white bandage wrapped thickly around the wound, and a large dark green t shirt that was tied at the waist with a rubber band in a failing attempt to make it fit better. When he brought his eyes back to her face, it held a look of puzzlement. "Did you just check me out?" she asked. Roach felt his face grew red, and he hastily began to speak. "No! I just noticed you looked, you know, clean!" She laughed. "Yeah, Doc said I could take a shower as long as I wore this weird waterproof wrap on my left. Well, I smelled like heck and more, so, I was like, why not?" Roach shrugged, about to say something, but she continued. "You guys, I don't know how you manage. The showers were plain disgusting, hair all over the place. Nasty. The soap is unscented, and I don't know how you guys manage to call that stuff shampoo. Besides, what ever happened to brushes? All you people have is combs!" Roach raised an eyebrow, voice unsure when he spoke. "I guess none of us really have long hair…" She sighed. "Well, get some. You could use one, too" She made a gesture at his hair, and he self-consciously ran a hand through it. Roach had to ask another question though, because the deep green of the tee shirt was a familiar one. "The clothes?..." She shrugged "They are the same pants, just washed quickly. Doc offered me some other pants, apparently belonging to some guy here, but two things. First of all, they were hideous dude pants, and second, a bear wouldn't fit in them. You follow me?" Roach raised an eyebrow even further. He hadn't been around girls in a while. Were they all like this? He prodded again. "The shirt?..." She smiled, laughing. "Oh yeah. My other shirt was so disgusting and practically destroyed, so I accepted the offer on a few shirt. They have no kid's shirts here, much less girl ones, so he just got one of your clean shirts, and gave it to me. He said you were the smallest one here, but when he gave me the shirt, I thought he was joking! It fit like a monster on me, so I tied it with a rubber band"

Roach chewed on the inside of his cheek, confused. He repeated, like he couldn't believe it. "My shirt?..." Alison shrugged again. "Yeah. Does that bother you?" He shook his head, saying simply "It's just weird to think that a shirt that is pretty tight on me is so…huge, on someone else." This made Alison laugh as he slowly pulled himself to a standing position. "Like I said, you are huge to me." He finally got to his feet, feeling the ache of his worn muscles. He looked down at her. "So, do you want to take a look around?" She nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah. Archer was the one to come and get me. I had just finished cleaning up and was getting around on my crutches as practice in my room, when this freaky huge guy walks in. I was all on the verge of freaking out and screaming when he said his name was Archer. I remember you saying something about him, so I said hi. He asked if I wanted to watch you all train, and I was like heck yes! So, he showed me this place overlooking the course and I watched you guys. I never really saw the guy who was yelling at you though. Who was it?" Roach smiled. "Ghost"

Roach loved the reaction on her face. It was disbelief and shock. "You let him yell at you like that? Has he ever made you like, crap your pants?" Roach shook his head, chuckling. "Naw. So, what do you want to do first?" Alison shrugged, giving Roach and indifferent look. "It doesn't matter. I'm hungry, but Ghost never stopped by. I still want to thank him, so where is he?" Roach looked around, truthfully unsure. "I don't know. We can check the barracks. I need to head that way to check on some laundry, so we can stop there too." He was pleased to see a smile on Alison's face. "That sounds okay. I just want to know one thing though." Roach paused, hearing concern in her voice. "Yeah?" She peered at him sheepishly for a moment before asking in a soft and timid voice. "Can you say he won't yell at me like that? Or like, explode in anger or something" Roach felt his lip twist a bit under his teeth, leading him to chew on it. He really wished he could offer her some form of consolation, but he couldn't. Ghost was a friend to him, but that didn't meant that he wasn't as unpredictable as the weather. After a moment with Alison's worried face looking up at him, he decided to give it to her as it was. "I'm not a liar, and I'm not about to lie to you. I can't promise you anything one way or another. That is just how it is with him. If you don't want to face him alone, I could be there to back you." It was a moment as she closed her eyes, drew in a breath, and opened them, looking at him with determination. "If you can face him, and all those others can, I can take a shot. And besides, by the sounds of it, it's a gamble. I just hope I am more lucky that I have been this past week." Roach smiled, glad to see bravery and determination in someone who a day ago had been whimpering and shaking. "Well, then, you can just followed me" He began at a relatively slow stride for him, but within a few paces, realized he had left Alison far behind. So, he backtracked and walked at an incredibly slow pace, making sure she didn't trip or stumble on the uneven ground. She smiled her thanks at him every time he did so, and thanked him for his patience as they slowly made their way to the barracks. Once they finally made it in, Roach showed her down the hall and to his room. They paused just outside of it, Roach quickly giving Alison the rundown. "So, this room belongs to Ghost and me. You will find my stuff in there, and his stuff, but if he is not there, DO NOT touch anything. I cannot stress that enough. And if he is, don't do that either. So, just do what you need to do, come out, and wait for me. Okay?" He watched her nod, and began to walk away. He looked over his shoulder briefly, but only long enough to see her draw in a breath, grip the handle, and slowly open the half destroyed door.


	12. Change Of Heart?

**So, if you are reading this far, I love you more than you imagine. I wouldn't ever dream that someone would read something of mine! I am so happy that you are considering to continue reading. I hope you do. It is short, like my other chapters, but I am sure you don't mind! We are getting to some excitement! (Well, maybe, if you consider this kind of stuff exciting.)**

Ghost was sitting on his bed, flipping through a magazine on he truly didn't know what. It was most likely sports or something, but it was just a blur of text and color as he flipped through it. He thought of that morning, and how he had worked them so hard. They had looked scared, though the looks at his face were not appreciative. He was glad though, that no one confronted him. After MacTavish had asked him to stop, he had come back here. He had been sitting on the bunk since, flipping blindly through the glossy pages. He didn't stop staring blankly when he heard voices outside of the room. He assumed it was Meat or Chemo or something, hoping to piss him off, but he was wrong. The door slid open, and rather than one of those men or Roach walking in, a girl with crutches hobbled in. He set the magazine down and sat up completely, looking down on her. The face was familiar. It was the girl from the building. She seemed to be looking better he noticed, but unfortunately, he couldn't say the same for his mood. He would look back on it later with disgust, but he snapped at her. "You're that girl, aren't you? What the fuck are you doing here?" Ghost almost flinched back at the sound of his words. Had he really just cussed a girl out? I should probably look into washing out my mouth sometime soon… He thought absentmindedly as she twitched back for a moment. He looked at her with impatience as she hesitantly opened her mouth, fear flashing over her face before she spoke. "I just wanted to say… thanks." He glowered for a moment. Thanks? "What for?" He muttered in a guttural tone. She widened her eyes. "You saved my life, you know that? That's really huge. I just wanted to thank you for saving me."

Ghost had to fight down the urge to let his eyebrows shoot to the ceiling. He did his work, and never thought about anything except the upshot, the endgame. He had a goal, and he went for it. Whether or not he hurt or helped lives along the way was not something he really noticed. Never before had someone thanked him for what he did, with the exception of his team mates. He muttered. "It doesn't matter. Haven't ever needed thanks, and I never will. It's just something you get used to not having." He only looked for a moment upon the confused and innocent face of the young girl. Her voice was soft and tender, but a bit timid as she spoke. "Well, that's sad. You deserve to be thanked. You shouldn't have to think that being gone unnoticed and not thanked is normal. You deserve better." Ghost guffawed. "You really think that, kid? Well get with the program. Life isn't all sugar and rainbows. You do something, you don't get thanked, you count it as the norm. Life goes on." She looked at him with a curious eye, though with a bit of fear still behind it. "Now, my parents taught me manners. But, no way am I going to call you "Mr. Ghost" so Ghost, let's get this straight. You saved my life. You probably have indirectly saved hundreds, thousands of lives. You give roach and everyone else here a hero to look up too. A thank you is long overdue." With that, she turned around, hobbling out of the door and beginning to close it. Right before it shut, she peeked her head back in. "By the way" she added gently, a playful gleam in her eyes. "I think your accent is sexy" and then the door clicked shut, a confused Ghost looking after her. Had that really just happened?

Roach walked down the hall with a shirt in his hands that he had just retrieved from the wash, and saw that Alison was already standing outside of the room. He wasn't surprised to see her out of the room already. Knowing Ghost, he had probably glared at her and yelled at her to get out. When he got to her, she had a thoughtful look on her face. "So, how was it?" he asked. She looked up at him, her lips a thoughtful yet sarcastic line. "It was pretty good. I went in, he cussed me out, I thanked him, he growled, and I left." Roach made a face. "Well, all in all, sounds pretty nice. So, you said you were hungry?" Alison nodded. "Yeah." Roach smiled. "Well, let's go to the mess hall then." With that, the two began to walk to the mess hall under the bright mid-day sun.

On the way to the mess hall, Alison asked Roach plenty of questions. "What do you do all day? Do you have to fall asleep by a certain time? What do you do for fun?" Roach answered gladly and with diligence, helping her along as they made their way to the mess hall. When they finally walked in through the doors, Roach guessed by the look on her face she was a little overwhelmed. A room full of people, people that to her looked like monster men, eating and yelling and talking. It was only after blinking a few times that Alison asked another question. "So? What's for lunch?" Roach cast a suspicious glance at the plate nearest him. His voice was unenthusiastic when he spoke. "Looks like roast beef and beans. Maybe some broccoli." This caused him to get a look that was a mixture of amazement and disgust. "Seriously?" Roach shrugged. "Yeah. We eat this kind of stuff a lot." This brought a pair of raised eyebrows from Alison. "You know that is like, pure protein, right?" Roach nodded. "Yeah, we need a lot of it. You saw what we do. We need each and every ounce of that stuff."

Roach walked over to his usual spot, surrounded by Ozone, Chemo, Scarecrow, Worm, and Royce. All five men were already beginning on their meals. Alison walked over with him, looking with wide eyes upon all of the huge men. Roach grabbed an unused chair and pulled it up beside his spot, nudging Ozone over to make room for Alison. He pulled the chair out for her to sit down, allowing her to sit and prop her crutches up before pushing her in. "Thanks" she said, smiling nervously at Roach. He guessed that she was pretty overwhelmed with all of the people around. He patted her shoulder with a large hand, smiling. "Hey, I'm going to get us both lunch. What do you want to drink?" Alison asked for water, and Roach walked away to get their food.

It only took Roach a little over a few minutes to get the food and drinks, but a little longer to get back to the table juggling multiple plates. The only thing was, he nearly dropped them as he saw what was happening back at the table. Ozone had a thick arm resting around Alison's shoulder, making her look very uncomfortable. Royce was leaning across the table, gesticulating rapidly with his hands. Worm was smoking, as he often did, and it was blowing right into Alison's face. Roach saw her look in his direction, eyes screaming 'help me!' Roach rushed over as fast as he could, and when he got closer, he yelled out "Hey!" The guys looked at him, laughing as he came over. He set the plates on the table and pushed Ozone's arm off of Alison. His voice sounded extremely annoyed when he spoke. "What do you think you are all doing?" He glared especially hard at Ozone, who was laughing lightly. "Hey, relax buddy! We were just messing around, and besides, she didn't mind." Roach looked at Royce, who by this time had sat back down. The dark haired man also shrugged, chuckling. "I was just telling her about this stray RPG on this recon-" Roach cut him off there. "Guys, I would like to remind you, she is thirteen. You don't need to touch her-" glare at Ozone, "Scare her-" stare down at Royce, "blow smoke in her face-' look at worm, "Or bother her in any way. I leave your for two minutes and you are harassing her already." Scarecrow put his hands up in mock defeat. "Okay, guard dog. Come on, settle down and eat." Roach sat down, pushing the smaller plate of food in front of Alison. She still seemed to look very uncomfortable squished between the two large men.

Roach grabbed his fork, and dug it right into the still warm roast beef. He picked up the large and juicy slab, jamming into his mouth as everyone was, and always did. After a few more large bites he looked down at the girl next to him. She was carefully sawing away at one of the large pieces, trying to make it smaller. She seemed to have sensed him looking at her, so she looked up at him. She asked Roach "Do you have any knives or anything?" Roach was about to offer to go to the kitchen and get one for her, when Ozone tapped her shoulder. Roach felt a feeling of dread as he looked at Ozone the same time Alison did. The man had a ridiculous grin on his face. "Don't worry, I have one." He said in a sly tone. Ozone had one hand under the table, and before Roach could yell at him to stop whatever he was planning, Ozone brought out and held up a huge, sharp, silver and black knife. Roach knew he kept it with him at all times, as many of the other men, including himself did. Alison gasped, and to Roach it sounded like she stifled a scream, and jumped back into him. This drew a round of laughter from the men around them.

Roach let out an angry sound before he yelled at the chuckling Ozone. "What the hell are you thinking?" Ozone took a breath from his laughter. "Just fucking around a bit. God, kid, you don't need to look so fucking scared!" Roach took a good look at Alison. Her face was pale, drained of all color. Her deep green eyes were wide, and she was shaking a bit, still eyeing the knife. Royce was the only one who wasn't laughing. Roach reached over the trembling girls head to grab for the knife, but Ozone slipped it back under the table and out of sight. Alison took a deep breath, sitting up straight again, but Roach could tell she was pressed much tighter to him, leaving a wide berth between her and the chuckling man who played with knives.


	13. Short But Sweet

**Here we go. Shortest yet, don't kill me, but I didn't leave a cliffie. Love me for that. Will update later, I hope. I hope that I have the time. I hope that you like it! **

The rest of lunch was uneventful for the most part. Soon after, Roach took her on a tour of the base. Well, in truth, it wasn't much of a tour. Just a little showing around the place kind of deal. It took maybe a little over two hours because of the crutches, but Roach didn't mind. Even though the whole camp had been getting kind of dull to him, Alison brought a whole new light on it. Once again she was asking questions like a fiend, and Roach answered them eagerly. They finally worked their way back to the mess hall. It wasn't too late in the day, maybe a little after one in the afternoon or so, but the things to do were already exhausted. Roach stood while Alison practically collapsed in a nearby chair. "What do you want to do?" Roach asked, running a hand through his hair. Alison sighed. "I don't think I see anything to do." Well, just as she said this, Toad walked out of the doors to the rec room. "What's back there?" Roach thought back to the rec room. It was nice, considering. Considering what Roach and the others were used to, that is. The couches were overstuffed, old, and with various stains and holes. The carpet was frayed and eaten away, where there was carpet, that is. Oh, and never forget the lovely stains plastered all over the room. Some blood, fights and accidents, puke from late nights, beer stains also falling under that cause, and a coating of ash falling over everything from how often everyone smoked. Well, forgetting that, there was much more. Cigarettes and beer cans littering the pace, a poker and pool table. Something in Roach, paternal instinct, maybe, told him that this was not a good idea. Alison looked back up at him. "So? What is it? Can we go? Whatever it is, I'm pretty sure I can handle it." Well, instinct goes to a point. He shrugged, pushing his doubt aside. "Sure. Why not?"

They walked into the room, Alison letting out a little gasp as they went in. The room was pretty big, and on any given day, most of the guys could be found there. Currently, that was true also. Other than Toad, in a quick scan Roach could not see anyone missing except for Toad who had just walked out, and Rook, who was still recovering. Roach looked at Alison for a reaction, but saw her eyes were glued to the somewhat large television in the middle of the room. Roach looked at her. "You want to watch television?" he asked, about to tell her they had no cable. She scoffed. "No! You guys have an Xbox, right?" Roach nodded. "So, heck, why don't we play? What games do you have?" Roach hummed. "Uh, I think we have Halo, Battlefield, Skyrim, and Call of Duty." Alison smiled. "I love that game! What prestige are you?" Roach smirked. "Fifth. You?" She gave him that look that said 'ha' "I am, or was before my house blew up, sixth. Beat that!" Roach shrugged. "I'm a busy person. I would own you any day at that game. I am such a low prestige because I work, I don't sit and drool in front of the Xbox all day." She hit him gently with one of the crutches. "So, why don't we turn it on to see who is really the champion here?" Roach couldn't say no to a challenge like that, could he? So he accepted, and they plunged into an epic battle of wills and weapons. Digital, of course.

**I love you all! If you got this far, you need to review because I need to know what to do better! You get nowhere in life if you don't have critisicm. I cant improve if you don't kill my story. I will like if you do that, don't get me wrong! Flames, I don't give a crap. Just review! (I don't like to beg. But, here it is. I beg you for a review.)**


	14. Under Scrutiny

**So, I promised an update and here it is! I love you all, and here is a few little things I have to say-**

**Queenkhs-I made humor in my story? Really? *Squee!* I cant do humor most of the time, so you saying this is the best! I hope this makes you happy! This is for you!**

**CODxBoSs- I will make sure to check that out! (Busy now, will do as soon as I am done this.) Thank you! As for my OC, I am glad you like her, I know she is straying into the land of Mary Sue, but I will work on that.**

**DustMan-OMG, you love it? I have never put any stories online before. You love it? OMG3 You must read fast! Not that I don't, but still! **

**Thank you for reading, all of you! Here is where some interesting things start up…**

It was two hours later when Roach looked up at the clock again. Two whole hours, and it felt like no time went by. Alison was right. She was good, better than him even. She had given him hints along the way, helping him become better. "Don't use your scope so often. Sprint less. Don't camp." Roach followed with diligence, taking a bit to get used to it, but he was really getting good. He looked at her with a smile on his face after the last round. "Hey, I am getting better, right?" She shrugged in a joking way. "I think so. Then again, I don't think you can get any worse than you were." Roach set the controller down for a moment, stretching. "Ha, so funny. I hope you know I was taking it easy on you." The two continued to banter playfully about the game, lightly insulting. As they did this, Roach let his eyes drift to the other side of the room where about half of the men still were. They seemed huddled together, whispering in low voices. Roach kept glancing at them, not really hearing Alison anymore. What were they planning? Ozone looked at him briefly, but then realized he was being watched, and snapped his eyes back to the group. Roach felt an elbow nudge his side, Alison signaling to him the next round was starting. Roach pushed the ill feeling he got from the little group joining aside and turned his eyes to the screen, not letting anything except the inability to get his controller working nag at him.

They played into the early hours of the night, and until Roach's thumb had started to hurt. He and Alison might have read minds, because they both leaned back, sighing, onto the couch. She looked at him with red, tired, bloodshot eyes. "I think we just about exhausted this for today. I'm hungry." Roach rolled his eyes. "Are all girls this high maintenance?" She rolled her eyes in rebuttal. "Of course. And not to mention, there are a few things I would like to request. First, I would like to not sick next to your knife wielding friend. That would be really nice. Second, we had better be eating something that tastes better, or is at least cooked better. It was okay, and I ate it, but let me tell you, it's not for me that I want something else. You give a whole bunch of guys as mature as your bunch beans and broccoli, you know there's some problems coming your way." Roach laughed, knowing she was right in what she said. "Well, I think that tonight we are having something similar. Sorry. And about seating arrangements, I think that we can put you in a different spot. How about next to me on the other side?" He was relieved when he saw the look of happiness cross her face, brightening her eyes. In fact, it brought a sense of happiness to himself. "Sure" she said, and they went to dinner.

It was a relief to Roach that dinner was uneventful. For the content of the meal, he was right. It was the same thing, though rather than broccoli, it was corn. He got another look from Alison. "Hey!" He had protested. "I'm not the one who cooks it. I'm the one who eats it. I can't complain" This roused another sigh from the girl, but she ate happily and without complaint. Ozone kept mostly quiet, but the others kept up with their usual joking antics. Roach had to shoot a few glares when they began to get a little bit in the higher ratings, but for the most part, it was a calm night. Roach found himself and Alison sitting quietly in the chairs at the table while most of the others were in the rec room already. Roach looked at a yawning Alison. "Are you ready to go to bed?" He asked. She squinted her eyes, finishing the yawn. "Don't be so much like my dad." She said, glaring at them, but then turned her head away from him. "What is it?" He asked gently. It took her a minute to turn her head back at him, but once she did, he saw her eyes were teary. "It's, it's just that I can't believe my parents are dead. They would al-always nag me about getting to bed on time but I never-never did." She quickly wiped a tear away, but it only took moments for her to burst out sobbing.

Roach felt a quick jolt of panic go through him. What was he supposed to do? He thought for a moment about doing something, a hug maybe, to help her, but then thought against it. Maybe she didn't want any comfort right now. Roach didn't know what to do. He still had both of his parents, so he didn't know how to react. So, he sat there quietly with her soft sobs for he didn't know how long, until she quieted, and only then did he speak again, trying to pull her mind elsewhere. "So? Where are you sleeping?" Alison couldn't seem to stop crying at first, but then she took a breath, wiping at her eyes. "I-I think that I am sleeping in that r-r-room in the infirmary." She stuttered. Roach plastered a cheerful smile on his face. "So, how about we go there? It is getting late, and you had a busy day." Alison rubbed away a final trail of tears, sniffing. "Well, I guess I did. So, that would be great, I guess." She reached a hand out for her crutches, pulling herself up. Roach helped her along to the infirmary, pretending he didn't hear the small sniffles and sobs she continued to make.

Roach led her to the small, empty room in the infirmary. The bed was still messy from when she had been there the past day, but it didn't seem to matter to her. She sat down on the edge of the bed, sighing. She looked up at him, her face a little tired. Roach shrugged a bit. "So, is there anything else that you need?" Roach thought that she was good, but the last time he had been around teen girls was when he was a teen boy. He had clearly forgotten a lot about them. She gave him an 'are you kidding me?' look, and launched into a whole assault of comments. "Honestly, I know you probably haven't been around girls in forever, but honestly? Listen, I showered and that crap, but I still need to brush out my hair, brush my teeth, and if you have any pajamas, I need them. What are you thinking? I mean, what do you sleep in?" Roach kind of twitched at this question. He usually stripped down to his boxers at the end of the day and fell onto the bed. Nothing special, nothing exciting. As for brushing his teeth, he had toothbrush and toothpaste, but rarely used them. He didn't care even though he knew it was probably giving him cavities or something. He scratched his head in genuine confusion. "Well, I sleep in my underwear, if you really need to know. I don't really brush my teeth, ever, maybe chew on some gum every once in a while…" He trailed off, seeing the look of disgust on her face. Was it all really that bad? She gave a scowl, half fake, half legit. "I should have guessed. You men are all Neanderthals. All pumped up on that testosterone. I mean, you guys are practically drowning in the stuff. Can you possibly, you know, become civilized and get some of that stuff for me. Because I can take a lot, but if I am here with you all, I need that. Bare nessesities, you know?" In truth, Roach didn't know. He stroked his chin, thoughtfully and absentmindedly. "Well, I guess that we have to have some kind of toothbrush, new ones, somewhere. As for pajamas, I guess you can wear another big shirt, and we can fix some pants for you?" She gave a look of disgusted reluctance. "Well, I am not wearing these to bed. So, I guess that sounds fine." He sighed, beginning to walk away. When his hand reached the knob of the door, he turned around, his face inquisitive. "Why am I running around, doing everything for you?" She smiled a lazy half smile. "Because I say the word, and you do. I'm not going to complain either. So, what are you waiting for?" Roach rolled his eyes, walking out of the door with a happy smile on his face.

Roach returned with his smallest pair of shorts, which were huge, his smallest shirt, which was huger yet, and a new toothbrush he got from Doc. He walked into the room to find her exactly where he left her. He set the bundle of clothes on the bed next to her. She gave him a faint smile. "Thanks." He shrugged. "Wasn't no trouble." She pulled the clothes closer to her and looked at Roach. He knew that this was a way without verbally saying 'get out' to portray that message. He walked out of the room again, shutting the door behind him. He walked down the hall and to Doc's office. The man was sitting at his desk, looking through a few papers. Doc peered up at Roach as he walked in. "So, how is she?" he asked. Roach nodded. "Really good. Her leg seems not to bother her that much, and her spirits surely aren't dampened." Doc nodded, something close to a smile hinting on his face. "Well, that's good. Please, try and just keep up on how she is doing in general. I can't be the babysitter around here. Besides, I heard MacTavish assigned you that job" this earned another smile from Roach. "Yeah, I guess you can call it that. I just think it's cool to have a new face around." Doc shooed him away with a hand. "I have work to do. I don't want to hear you blather on" Roach rolled his eyes with the utmost sarcasm before walking out. That was Doc for you.

He got back to Alison's room, and rapped lightly on the door. Her voice called "Come in!" He did, and found her sitting on the edge of the bed in a gigantic shirt and even larger pants. She had a light look on her face, but her eyes told him that if he laughed, he would be paying for it dearly. He turned on the lamp in the corner of the room, then turned out the larger of the lights. "Do you think that you're all done primping and preening?" She cast him a relatively annoyed glance, pulling herself under the thin sheets of the bed. "Yeah, Mr. I shower once a week." Roach knew there was sarcasm in the voice, and a hint of playfulness, but he felt the need to defend himself. He showered every day, as they all did. They would smell worse than they did normally if they didn't. "I am proud to say that I am a man who showers daily" He decreed in a fake deep voice. Alison chuckled, or giggled, more of. "Well, try twice daily. G'night." She whispered softly, laying her head down on the pillow. Roach smiled to himself in the dark room. Trying to be as quiet as possible, he walked out of the room, hearing the door click shut behind him.

Ghost was deep in thought when he heard the door open for a second time in a short while. Once again, it was Roach. This time, he was not on an errand to fetch clothes for a girl though. It seemed that one of the notorious late night partiers was hitting the hay early. He turned his head and looked at Roach. "How is she?" Roach shrugged. "Good. Definitely better. I'm just worried about the other guys though. They act like she is one of them, not a young girl." Ghost muttered under his breath something about how everyone here isn't truly grown up before turning his senses tuned into Roach off. The man had a good heart, but for God's sake, he could only take so much! Sometimes Ghost could swear that hearing that man babble on about absolute nothingness for the longest time possible was worse than torture in more ways than one. He closed his eyes, fingers clasped together and lying on his chest. Ghost didn't turn over in his bed, or think any more about Roach. His thoughts went to the girl. He remembered her words, saying that he deserved to be thanked. Ghost hadn't thought about what he had done for a living for a long time. He was a protector, and avenging angel for the innocent who had lives and families destroyed. He never got a thanks for it, and had accepted it as normal. The voice of a young girl who was as new to life as a moonflower just bloomed came to his mind again. 'It doesn't have to be normal' she had said. She thanked him for something that he took as part of day to day. A strange feeling twanged in him. Why was a small comment from a girl making him stir so much inside? Why was he now suddenly putting his life under scrutiny?

Roach, in the dark, on the lower bunk of the room was dwelling on similar thoughts. The other day he had been talking to Alison about the men on base. They might be as annoying as Hell sometimes, granted, but he loved them. He trusted them all with his life, even the pranksters Meat and Chemo. He trusted Ozone no matter how much he bothered him. He trusted them. Did he? Was a small girl bringing his trust of his friends to question?

**Duh Duh Duh…. I have a rough plot outline in my head, but I want some action. Suggestions are welcome! **


	15. Early Mornings

**EEH! I feel so bad! I didn't review, like any of my awesome reviewers stories! I am meaning to, I just am very busy! This is of average *short* length, so don't expect anything exciting. I need some excitement, but I can pretty much promise some coming your way in next chapter. Just a few things to clear up-**

**I know some people said specifically they like the relationship between Roach and Alison. I do too! The thing is, I will admit, it is hard for me to write. I don't want Roach to act like a pedo, (which he is not in my story) but I don't want it to be underdone. I will admit it is hard for me to get right. If you have suggestions, feel free to say!**

**Another thing. The whole "Swearing' thing. I hate to swear, and avoid it at all costs. This is call of duty though, so, I can't really avoid it. Please, forgive mean the relatively light or misused language! **

**It is getting late, so I will have all my responses to comments typed up next update, or I will PM you all. Thank you for reading, lots of love to all my readers and reviewers. You guys rock!**

Next morning was hell. Roach was dragged out of bed at an ungodly hour by a screaming Ghost, yelling at him about how he wasn't man enough to get up early. Roach wanted to cram half of the pillow over his head and the other into Ghost's mouth, but he wasn't about to argue. He jumped, well, fell out of bed and yanked on a shirt as the door was slammed on him. He heard the storming footsteps of Ghost down the hall, and the yelling again. It sounded like everyone was getting the same wake up treatment this morning. Roach groaned. Ghost was being so strict, more so than ever, and he was getting it seemed, more bitter. Almost as if he had a hint of regret and sorrow buried under all the anger he exhausted onto them. Roach knew as he pulled on light pants, he didn't need to make it any worse, for himself or for the others. He tried to rub the sleep from his eyes with the back of a hand, but wasn't successful. He willed himself strongly not to look towards the clock as he looked out of the room. Roach apparently didn't have a will all too strong. He let his eyes dart towards the digital before he exited. Damn! He thought to himself. It was barely three in the morning! He let out a small groan as he tried to work the blood to all of his limbs still numb from sleep.

It was still dark outside when the group of stumbling men made their way to the pit. Roach was one of the groggy ones leading the bunch, others like Chemo and Rocket nearly falling behind. They stumbled like drunks to the edge of The Pit, where what seemed like a seething Ghost was already standing. He yelled in their direction, his words like harsh grating metal on Roach's still sleeping ears. "What are you all doing? Get your asses down here before I make you all regret stumbling around like a bunch of ladies!" Well, despite the harsh words, Roach hardly could get his feet of lead moving. Ghost was being such an ass lately! Just the sound of another harsh barking command from Ghost's mouth made Roach think twice. Did he really want to face the wrath of this man? Getting his body to move was a hard task, but at a light jog, Roach was the first to make it to the lineup at the edge of the pit. It was so dark, except for a few lights scattered around, Roach nearly ran into a tree. Narrowly avoiding what could have been an awful confrontation, Roach stood as straight as he could make himself in this morning. Ghost could have shot him an approving look, but this was a thing a groggy man could hardly grasp at such an early time in the morning.

Ghost felt his throat dry from the yelling. It had taken almost another minute for the men to get lined up and in place, which annoyed him. He had told them to get up, and yelled, like he always did. They were usually so responsive, but it seemed that today it was different. He couldn't help but wonder if it was because of him. If it was, Ghost was puzzled. He had worked them hard yesterday, like he did every day. He had then left them alone. He did what he always did. Ghost swallowed for a brief moment before resuming his yells. "Now, ladies, you look like a bunch of mother fucking daisies. It is the morning, I know, but do you see me slacking and slouching? No! I don't want to see it from you pansies any longer. As for your appearance, you disgust me. You clothes are messed, and you look like you preschoolers got yourself dressed. Didn't have your mothers to help you this time, did you?" Through the gloom he saw a few nervous tugs at messily untouched shirt corners and wrinkled pants, and a few figures become a bit more straight. Ghost saw one man, a medium sized one, looking right at him. Ghost returned the glare, trying to see who it was in the dim light. The man was Ozone, glaring at his face, eyes slowly following the curve of his scar. Ghost wanted to bring his hand up to self-consciously touch it, but kept his hand down. He felt the scar grow hot under the glance, so he brought up what knew was going to have to be brought up. "Listen all you roses. I know you might not be looking at a skull any longer, but that doesn't mean you can slack. That doesn't mean you can pretend that I am no longer your superior, or that I am incapable in any way." Ghost shot a quick look at Roach, feeling the truth of the man's words seep in. He was the same man, wasn't he? He could uphold his reputation without any extra effort, couldn't he?

Roach felt Ghost lock eyes on him for a moment before drawing them away again. His face heated up as a few heads near him made a glance towards him. Roach didn't bother to look back, but out of the corner of his eye he was one of them was Ozone. Roach was pretty far away, but he could practically feel the bad vibes coming off of the man. Something was wrong, and Roach knew it. Ozone was usually pretty laid back and cool with everything, but these past two days since he saw Ghost, something had changed in him. Roach didn't have much longer to think about this though, because he was the first in the line to be shoved forward into the early morning hell that was The Pit.

Ghost watched with venom in his eyes over the men as they ran like rabbits through course after course to the point of pure exhaustion. Yet, he made them run again. Ghost felt his palms rub against each other. Ozone was giving Roach a look that held malice and death in it, one of hatred and yearning for revenge. Ghost felt a muscle in his face twitch slightly. He had never really like Ozone. The man was too quiet, or too moody, all of the time. Ghost was hardly the one to speak, but something that was making him feel uncomfortable came in waves off the man. Ghost snapped himself out of it so he could yell an instruction via microphone to the latest pit victim, Royce. The man was running at a sprint, dodging "fallen" objects and shooting each target that came in his way. The man made a final lunge for the platform at the end, just as the sun began to rise. Ghost let his eyes rise up to appreciate it for a moment. Russia sure sucked most of the time, but nothing beat a sunrise over the horizon. It filled the sky with color and brightness, like a sudden burst from a cloud. Not only were they beautiful, but they were early.

Ghost only had a moment to appreciate it though, as he had to give the training course a next victim. It was Roach. Ghost trusted that the man would do well enough, so he knew it was okay to jump around when he heard someone coming his way. He expected MacTavish, but instead, it was the girl again. Maybe Roach had said her name was Alison, but he couldn't remember. The plain clothed girl with crutches must have seen him at about the same moment, for she locked her green eyes on him and froze. Ghost scrunched his eyebrows together. "What the hell are you doing here?" He asked her. Once again, the guilt of cursing went to his head for a brief moment. She shook her head briefly, the still wet hair hitting her face. "It's okay, I just wanted to watch Roach for a bit. But, you're here, so, I guess I can leave." She flicked her eyes to the ground and turned away. Ghost felt the words coming to his lips, and tried with all restraint to hold them back, but something made them slip out. "You can still watch. Come on." To what could have been relief or joy, the young girl turned around. Her face held a look of puzzlement and possibly fear. "Okay?..." She went on crutches to the spot next to him with a nice overview of the course. Ghost felt her look up at him as he looked over the men and yelled another command. He did not return the gaze to the wise yet young eyes.

Roach groaned as he stepped up next in line for the course. Again. He had stopped counting how many times he had gone through it. He was much too worn at this point to even care. He just wanted it to be over. Not only was he having to work harder than usual so early in the morning, he had the feeling that eyes were boring holes in his back with hatred. He had a suspicious feeling of who it was, but didn't bother to check. He blinked roughly, and peered discretely up at where he knew Ghost stood over The Pit, watching them. To his surprise, he saw not only Ghost, but Alison as well. The two were turned, facing each other, Ghost with a look of something that could have been confusion on his face, but Roach highly doubted it. Roach was far away, and it was very un-Ghost like to do something like that. Abruptly, the horn rang out and Roach jumped. He powered his way into the course without another thought, but he would soon have to bring himself to wonder just what his superior and his responsibility were talking about.

Ghost looked at the girl, a bit confused as Roach dove into the Pit again. "So, you think I need to let up on them? Why the hell would I do that?" He twitched his eyes briefly to Roach as the man jumped over an obstacle. Alison gestured to the line of yawning, panting, and shaking men. "Look at them. They are your friends, I know, no matter how much you deny it. You can't treat them like they are dogs running for your enjoyment. Besides, Roach never said anything bout you being this strict." Ghost scoffed. "Roach says a lot of things. He must be confused." Alison let her eyebrows come together. "I don't think so. He knows you. I trust him when he says the mask thing changed you a bit. So, did it?" Ghost let out a frustrated sigh. "If you knew Roach at all, you would have heard him say I don't exactly like that subject right now." Alison protested. "But he said you changed when it did. You haven't been acting like yourself." Ghost let out a sound that was between a chuckle and a groan. "Listen, I just want to uphold my reputation. Cant have anyone thinking I am a coward or anything." Alison look up at him, and accusatory disbelief in her eyes. "Whatever you say. I just think that something is bugging you." Ghost turned bluntly away, trying to avoid the question he knew he would have to answer himself. What was wrong with him? He thought he was doing just as he had before, but if Roach was noticing things, how long would it be before the others did too? And more importantly, why was he doing what he did anyway? Ghost sighed. He never sighed. But sometimes, the world is a big and confusing place, and it seems to knock the breath right out of you.


	16. Ghost in Hell

**So, here we go! I am so proud of myself. I have never written a personal fanfiction exceeding about ten thousand words, and I am already over thirty. Hoorah for me! Well, enough for self-celebration. I am bursting with other ideas for fanfictions I am wanting to write, but I have a strict policy- Only one story at a time. I have tried to multi story, but I find that I end up neglecting all of them. It is a shame, because many good ideas of mine have gone down the drain because of that. So, therefore, you will only ever find me working on one story at a time. Not that writing more than one story at a time is bad; its just that I have my way of doing things. Eh, this is getting to be a long note. I am babbling, aren't i? If you are interested, I will put another one on the bottom of this chapter.**

Ghost yelled at the latest victim of the course, hearing gentle clicking as Alison went away. He resisted the urge to look back at her, see with what attitude she was leaving. The man who was in the pit was Toad, and Ghost watched him trip over a small pebble in his path and fall to the ground. Ghost was about to yell out a warning as he saw the man go askew and his face went falling dangerously fast towards an obstacle made of hard steel. It was too late. Toad yelled out a vicious curse as his face smashed into the metal, blood already spurting from a wound. The man hit the ground, one hand up to his face. Already, one of the men, it looked like Rocket, was on the course to see how he was doing. Ghost watched, knowing what he would see. Toad had a large gash across his forehead, blood leaking into his eyes, and a nose that looked smashed and crooked. Ghost spoke so they could hear him. "Get to the infirmary. The rest of you, you're done. For now. I expect to see you in the firing range after lunch." A collection of relieved sighs came from the group of men as Ghost watched Toad and Rocket go the infirmary, Toad with a hand pressed to his heavily bleeding wound.

Roach breathed out in relief. The hell that was this morning was over for now. He turned to see Alison already up and coming towards him. "How long have you been up?" He asked, wiping a line of sweat from his forehead. She smiled. "Just a little. I saw maybe the last few minutes of you guys training. And how is that guy? The one who fell?" Roach grimaced. He was concerned for the man, as the wound had bled a lot. Well, most head wounds did. "I don't know. I think he broke his nose. But don't worry about the bleeding. Head wounds bleed a lot." She nodded, understanding. "Well, I just hope he feels better, because that look like it hurt." Roach nodded, using his fingers to flick a clump of dirt on his shoulder off. "So, what were you doing up there with Ghost?" He inquired. He thought he detected a flash of thoughtfulness enter her face, but it flashed away a moment later. "Nothing much. I went to watch, he was there, and he let me watch. Nothing much." Roach raised an eyebrow. "I saw you talking with him. What was it? Seriously, what?" "Oh, it was nothing. I was asking him why you guys did this. He was all like 'it doesn't matter to you, but they can't sit on their asses all day' and I just decided not to bother him any further. He doesn't seem like the kind of guy you want to bother too much." Roach started to make his way slowly back to the barracks, with Alison right by him. "No kidding. I messed with him once, and ended up regretting it for the next month." Roach began to go into detail about the last time he pissed off Ghost, but even though Alison was looking at him and paying attention, he had a strange suspicion that her mind was elsewhere.

Roach paused at the entrance to the mess hall. "Hey" he said to Alison. "I am going to go get showered and get new clothes. Do you think you can hang here at the mess hall alone for a few minutes?" He truly doubted his better judgment as he thought about this, leaving her to be torn apart by anyone here without him as her suitable protection. She looked up at him with wide eyes, nearly voicing his exact thoughts. "Won't I get, you know, harassed or something?" Roach wanted to put his head in his hands. Just at that moment though, Archer went by them to the mess hall also. Roach called out "Hey, Archer!" The tall man turned around, looking at him. "Yeah, what is it? Better not take too long- I am dying for breakfast." Roach walked up to him with Alison close behind. "I have to go get showered, and I don't want to leave her alone in there. Ozone nearly scared her to death the other day. Could you watch over her for a few minutes while I'm gone?" Archer clapped a hand on Roach's shoulder. "No problem. I'll make sure that she doesn't die or anything." Roach nodded his thanks, glad that he was leaving Alison in good hands that he trusted while he was away. He didn't look back as he trotted to the showers and the barracks.

Ghost was already back in his room, sitting on the top bunk. He had torn off his early morning clothes and had dressed into lighter cargo shorts and a tight black shirt. In truth, Ghost felt like a child right now. Locked away in his room, sitting on his bed, but worst of all was what was in his hands. He held the two halves of the mask that had been ripped in half. He carefully ran his large, dark, and calloused hands over the familiar fabric. The broken skull pattern grinned up at him, a familiar pattern that he had seen in the mirror many times. One that everyone else saw and was used to seeing. The one that had made him who he was. In frustration, Ghost threw his head back on the pillow. He shouldn't have let a piece of fabric dictate his appearance and his attitude. He should have trusted himself and others more than he had. Shame filled him as he thought of the little girls words. Talking to him about how he 'changed' ever since his mask came off. She hadn't extended on what Roach had said, but he trusted that it wasn't the most desirable things. He knew that Roach and him were okay now, but he was still fearful about what the man truly thought. The door clicked, and in half a second Ghost whipped the two halves of the skull away under his leg. Roach was the one to walk in. He didn't really look at him. After a few seconds of shuffling through his duffle bag, Ghost winced as Roach shot him sarcastic words. "Yeah, Toad is fine. Thanks for asking. Great to know you care so much and aren't just going to hide in here from everyone, including MacTavish." Ghost growled. "I still need to be alone. Just get out." He heard Roach mutter "Whatever" and leave. Maybe Alison was right. He was changing.

Ghost suddenly felt like slapping himself. No, he couldn't be changing. He had to be the same, strong man that he always was. If he broke down now, what could happen on a mission. He could break down and become a whimpering pile of child. He couldn't let that happen. He let out a reluctant sigh. He would get up and go talk to MacTavish for a bit, maybe smoke some. He could go to the rec room and play cards for a bit, or go to the shooting range ad get some target practice in before the rest of the guys. He could go out and do the things he usually did. Ghost managed to get himself partially up and even preparing to go down the bunk before the corner of the skull looked up at him again. Ghost lay back down. He could use another day to think, and be alone. Then, he could go out and prove that he was the same to all the men. I will do just that, he thought to himself. I will do just that.

Roach went at a light jog to the mess hall. He ran a hand through his damp hair and quickly finished pulling on his shirt just as he opened the doors to the mess hall. His eyes began an immediate scan for Alison, and he found her sitting in one of the empty spots next to Archer. The man was talking to her, it seemed, as they both ate their breakfasts. Archer had something that looked like a heaping of scrambled eggs, toast, and sausage on his plate. Alison on the other hand had one egg and a piece of toast. Both looked pretty happy, and Alison glad she was a table away from the people she had sat with by Roach. He got over to her, and she looked up at him. "You guys have good breakfasts." Roach shrugged. "Yeah, I guess. So, do you want to come and sit back with me?" Alison let her face fall. She had a look of sorrow and regret on her face. "Roach, just for today, can I have breakfast with Archer? He has some really great stories. Is that okay?" Roach felt a stab of hurt. He had just been rejected by a thirteen year old. The last time that had happened was when he was thirteen. He took a breath, never imagining to let it show. "Sure, that's great. Archer, you be careful exactly what stories you tell her, okay?" The large man let out a small chuckle. "No fears, Roach. She's cool." Roach nodded and walked away, confident she was in good hands for the remainder of the meal.

**I am extremely proud of myself! This took me about half an hour to write, which is pretty slow. I write really fast, but have you ever heard of this thing called the internet? That little button that is so tempting on the tab line that once you click it, you lose track of time entirely? I read a quote somewhere that said the writers worst enemy is the internet. Too true! I thought this was some of my best writing, just as a personal. Very proud of myself! Review please, and I love constructive criticism! Oh, and as a note to all of those who think that "oh, I just wont review because I am lazy' I make sure to review at least one of my reviewers stories at one point or another. Just sayin' : )**


	17. Realization To Mind

**Okay, this is going to be yet another killer long note. I just want to tell you all, my friends introduced me to two bands yesterday- Skillet and Thousand Foot Krutch. You don't know who they are? Well, go on YouTube and listen to their songs. Listened to them the whole time I was writing. So, as for this chapter, I loved writing it. There is one long paragraph with a lot of dialogue, but I think you can handle it, no? Please, I worked hard on this one! (Actually, long note will be at the bottom for those of you who actually want to get on with reading.)**

Roach finished his meal just as Alison went up to him. "So, Archer told me this time you both were on a mission and you let your gun misfire and you hit your own foot. How did you manage that? Archer said you were just plain stupid." Roach thought sullenly that it was probably a bad idea to let Archer tell her about that. "No, I was not plain stupid. The safety thing was broken, and I tripped. Not a big story. Anyone could have done it." This got a laugh from Alison. "Sure, of course it could have. Anyone is able to blame a gun and hurt themselves. Anyway, is it cool with you if I go play some Xbox?" Through the shrug, Roach yawned. "Sure. But, I am going back to get some sleep. I don't want to leave you alone in there." She shrugged. "Well, it looks like all of the other guys are going to get some more sleep too. I think I will be fine playing video games alone. Besides, it is right next to the kitchen. If anything bad happens, there are people really close." Roach still doubted how safe it could be, but let his eyes wander for Ozone. Alison must have read his mind or something. "He went back to bed also. I told you; I'm fine. You don't need to worry." Roach knew that he still would worry though. With a reluctant sigh, he gestured to the rec room doors with his hand. "Be careful. I will probably be back a little before lunch." Alison was already on her way to the rec room. "No problem" she called over her shoulder. Roach sighed, and yawned, ready to collapse in his bed.

Ghost was still sitting in the same position on his bed, and he hadn't really moved. One might have thought he was dead if it was not for the faint rise and fall of his chest. He heard the click of the door again, and the light steps of Roach coming into the room. He didn't bother to talk to him, but just let the man fall into the bed below. He heard a deep intake of breath, and the shift of fabric on fabric. He guessed that the man was catching up on some sleep. He remained there for a few more moments, then slipped out of the room silently. He walked down the near silent hallway, bumping into Scarecrow as the man went to collapse in his own bed. Ghost guessed that most of them were going to back to their beds, take a recovery from the rough morning they had. Ghost walked out into the morning sun, feeling the rays hit his skin, and his face. It was brighter than he was used to, his glasses still lying in shards in the warehouse. Ghost shrugged it off, going to the mess hall. He opened the door only to find Toad there, sitting alone, eating at a piece of toast. His head had a bandage around it, his nose with pieces of tape on either side. Ghost saw Toad's eyes dart to him angrily for a second before returning to his toast. Ghost felt kind of bad, because even though it was his fault, really, those wounds looked painful. He tried to ignore the man as he walked to the rec room, hoping that no one was in there. And if anyone was, he hoped that it was someone like Archer who wasn't pissed at him. He opened the door, and found his wish was true. The room was pretty much empty, except for a small girl with a controller in her hands, staring at the glowing screen. She looked at him, only for a second, but returned to the game.

Ghost tried to ignore the fact at how blatantly he had been ignored, and walked over to the poker table in the back. He grabbed the deck of cards and sat down, alone. He shuffled absentmindedly, trying not to focus on the small noises coming from the television. The cards were set up with skill from Ghost's hand, for a manly game of-Solitaire. He heard the noises from the television cease, and the sound of someone getting up. The click of crutches came closer, and he braced himself. He didn't want to talk to anyone right now, much less her. Much less the girl that was bringing his whole past few days, his whole life, into question. Well, life is never that kind, is it? She paused by his shoulder. "You know Solitaire is the lonely man's game, right?" Ghost sighed, biting back a harsh comment. "I'm not lonely. I can play this game with more skill than you ever will be able to." This earned him a laugh that didn't annoy him as much as he thought it would. "You know, I hope you are aware that Solitaire takes no skill whatsoever. You just need a lucky deck of cards. Hate to break it to you." Ghost made an annoyed sound at the back of his throat. "You know what I meant. And, I am not lonely." The chair next him got pulled out and Ghost had to resist the urge to push the chair away. Reluctantly, he let the girl sit down next to him. "You don't need to say you aren't lonely twice, you know. I heard you the first time. Besides, I know you aren't lonely. You have Roach, and all the guys, and that Captain guy. I just thought that you would be more; social, I guess." Ghost set down an ace on the table. "I'm not exactly the social type. You should have figured that out by now." This only earned him another casual shrug. "I never said you were. I just thought that you would actually show some appreciation for you friends."

The words stung Ghost worse than any bullet ever could have. Not only was this girl acting like she knew all about him and his friends, but the scary part was- She was actually right to some points. He usually was more social than he was acting lately, though he usually had a cold mask over him. What really bothered him was what she said about appreciating his friends. "I do appreciate them" he retorted. "I always have their backs when they are being shot at. I don't think you can get more appreciative of the little they do for you than that." A two of hearts was placed over the ace, and he listened harder and more eager to the response than he knew he should have. "Little, huh? I don't see you busting your head open on an obstacle course for them." "I'm their superior. They do that for a reason." "Of course they do. Everything here has a purpose, doesn't it? Maybe if you showed them kindness, or did the course yourself, they would give you a little more respect" A vein pulsed in Ghost's head, threatening a headache. "I don't do that, for the reason that the great apes need someone to order them around a bit. Besides, I can do that in my spare time." "Oh, really, do you?" "Sure. I do. I can do it this afternoon if you want me to prove it. Or, I could just break something here to prove anything that needs proven." "Sure, just make sure you don't cut your head open like that guy. You wouldn't want another scar on that face. I mean, you're pissed off enough at the guys as it is. You don't need another thing to give you an excuse to yell at them like they are dogs."

A pin could have dropped on the other edge of the room and it would have been heard. The argument faded out, Ghost hearing the words. His face grew red in anger, he felt his hands clench into fists. The veins on his neck stood out, his eyebrows coming together in an angry knot. He was a volcano threatening to explode. Now, he nearly did. He slammed the cards in his hand in fury down on the table, watching them explode across the table. He stood up so abruptly, the chair fell backwards. He faced the girl that was sitting, her face calm rather than frightened. His eyes were lit with a fury. He yelled with a vengeance. "Listen to me! You have no idea what you are talking about! You are joking about things that are never meant to be brought back up! You don't know me, or my friends! Or even if they are my friends! You are nothing more than a small, fucking child who has no idea what she says! I can't be a hero to anyone who needs one! I need a hero to! I am only a person! Not some superman!* you can't pretend you know everything about me, because I have so much more inside you will never see!" He stood there, red faced. He had expected a violent reaction, fear, or anger back. But the small girl, she just sat there without moving, a look of knowing. "I know. That's what I want to find. That's what I want you to face. By acting like you are now, you are making a big mistake. I hope you see that in time, before you lose whatever you have left of your friends." Ghost took a deep breath, the last of his anger fading away as she got up and left the rec room. Ghost stiffly walked over to the couch and collapsed in it. He put his head in his hands, feeling like he wanted to cry, something he hadn't done in years. He was collapsing from the inside out, falling apart and crashing down like a wave. What was happening? What was happening to him?

***Here is the star from one of the paragraphs! Well, those are nearly the exact lyrics to Skillets song, Hero!**

**Okay, very important! Well, kind of. I have like I said, been listening to those bands a lot. These are the songs. **

**My inspiration while writing-**

**21 guns, Riot, Animal I have become, boulevard of broken dreams (green day)**

**Phenomenon, Last Word, Move, Smack down (Thousand Foot Krutch)**

**Feel like a monster, Hero (Skillet)**

**Now, these are the best songs and bands ever of all time. But, I request you go to the wonderful YouTube and listen to at least two of them. The first and foremost is Hero, by Skillet. I heard it for the first time just a little while ago and found it was the theme song for my story so much. Not even kidding. You will realize that the man voice is Ghost or Roach, either one, and the girl voice is Alison. So great, not even funny. The other song is boulevard of broken dreams, green day. That right there is Ghost's song. You will know why when you heard it. As for if they are clean or not, Hero is good, other song, eh, only two bad words. So, listen to those songs! I am trying to find theme songs for all the guys- feel free to send suggestions! Review please, I love constructive criticism. How am I supposed to get better if you don't help me out a bit? I do all this for you guys : )**


	18. After The Storm

**Third update today! Yay me! I am so happy for myself, and I hope all you readers enjoy this! Don't worry about the cliffhanger though-Yes, there will be one, but it will be resolved by my update in an hour or so : ) **

Roach snapped himself awake to the sound of the door opening. He blinked open his eyes, rubbing his head with the palms of his hands. Ghost had come into the room, and by the time that Roach had blinked the sleep from his eyes all that he could see of the man was the disappearing tip of his boot onto the top bunk. Roach glanced at the clock. It was a bit before lunch, giving him enough time to go check on Alison. A stiff back was all the reward that Roach got for pulling himself out of bed, in addition to that, a numb foot. Roach gently shook the life back into his foot as he walked down the hall. The deep heavy snoring of the other men could be heard even through the thick doors, and Roach couldn't help but smile. It was the middle of the day, and they were sleeping like a bunch of babies. As of course, this put a hilarious image in Roach's mind. He kept it there for the whole time to the rec room. He noticed no one but Toad sitting alone at a table, an open book in hand. Toad peered over the edge of the book as Roach came closer. The smaller man sat down next to Toad. "You look like hell buddy." Roach smirked when Toad replied. "Feel like it to. But, I was stupid. That sums it up." This made both of them silent. Roach hated silence, so he decided to lighten the situation a bit. "Well, look on the bright side. It was a learning experience. It hurts to hit your face on a giant metal obstacle. Now, we know not to do that again!" This earned Roach a nice punch in the shoulder. "Hey, but seriously, feel better. I have to go check on Alison." Toad widened his eyes. "Oh, is she in the rec room?" Roach let his eyebrows knot together. "Yeah, why?" Toad grimaced. "Well, Ghost went in there a little while ago. It was quiet at first, then I heard yelling, then he stormed out. I thought it was one of the guys. God, I hope he didn't kill her or something." Toad didn't even get a chance to finish what he was going to say, because Roach was already halfway to the rec room doors.

The doors to the rec room were flung open, a panicking Roach in the entrance. He let his eyes go straight to the couch, where much to his relief, Alison sat, gaming away. She turned to him for a second before snapping her eyes to the screen again. "Hey, Roach. What's up?" A raised eyebrow and a scan of the room later, Roach warily replied. "Nothing. What went on with you and Ghost?" Alison shrugged, biting her tongue in a moment of frustration in the game. "Nothing. He came here, and did nothing really. I suggested he let up on you guys, and he got made, yelled at me, stormed off. Nothing to it." Roach ran a hand through his sandy brown hair, letting out a breath of relief and frustration. "You can't do that. It is suicide to keep bothering him. So, how about we stay away from Ghost, okay?" "Whatever" was the response somewhat muttered in his direction. For some strange reason, Roach had the feeling that she was lying about the encounter with Ghost, and the feeling that his order would not be obeyed.

It was about half an hour later and a few rounds of gaming later that the sounds of tired men dragging themselves to the mess hall became obvious. Roach set his controller on the couch and massaged his thumb. "Gosh, how long can you go without getting your thumbs sprained or anything?" The only response he had was the rapid clicking of buttons, courtesy of Alison's fingers. Sighing, Roach stretched his arms to loosen them. "I think we should go have lunch. I don't want to be late to the firing range or Ghost will have my ass- I mean hide." Alison looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "It's okay. I appreciate the fact you try to keep it clean around me. But, I am a middle school kid. I hear worse than that all the time. The other guys don't seem to care, so you don't need to make a special exception for me." Finally, something that caused Roach to smile. "Good, because this is longest I have ever went without swearing." It was thirty seconds later when Alison finally put the controller down. "Well, why don't we get to lunch?"

Roach held the gun in steady hands, peering for a second or so in the scope before firing with confidence. The slight recoil hit his shoulder, but he pushed it away in order to hear Ghost scream. "More steady! This is target practice! There is no point to it if you don't attempt to hit a target!" Roach grumbled and clipped another mag into place, once again joining the gunfire of practice with his friends. Finally, Ghost called out again. "Okay, that's enough! We're done here today. Go on now!" No one hesitated to follow those orders, carefully taking the ammo out of the guns and placing them back in their places. Roach found that Alison was close by, and had been watching the whole hour. "That was sweet. Really great. You are awesome." Jokingly, Roach flexed his arm muscles. "I know I am." Alison rolled her eyes, but smiled, clearly showing what she thought of his tastes in humor. "Hey, where is Ghost?" Roach turned around, about to point to where he saw Ghost seconds earlier. "He was right-" But cut off as he noticed that Ghost was no longer there. He sighed. "I don't know. He was right there, but he didn't get the name Ghost for any reason. He is like a ghost. Here one second, gone the next." Alison shrugged. "Doesn't matter anyway." Once again, Roach had that strange feeling she was lying. He only wondered what she could be hiding…

Night fell fast after many more hours of gaming and eventually, eating, and Roach found himself back in the infirmary bedroom with Alison. She was already in the clothes he gave her for pajamas yesterday, and according to her, she was ready for bed after nearly half an hour of grooming. Roach had waited patiently in the hallway of the infirmary. She called for him to come back in. He did, and found the lights already off and her already in the bed. "So, long day today?" Through a yawn, Alison spoke. "Yeah, I guess so. Bigger for you I guess." Roach chuckled. "Yeah. So, are you ready to sleep?" Another yawn. "Yeah, definitely. I bet you are going to stay up and do something with the guys though, huh?" Roach shook his head. He had other plans tonight. "Naw, I'm actually going to bed also. I don't want to be hurting again if we get woken up early again. Knowing Ghost, I wouldn't put it past him." He thought he could see the faint smile through the dark. "Well, G'night then." Roach returned the farewell and walked out of the room, making sure to shut the door behind him. He walked past Rook's room, peering in for a moment. The large man was already sleeping, and he heard a voice behind him. "What are you doing?" Roach turned to see Doc. "Just checking on him. I want to make sure he is alright." Doc waved a hand. "He will be up tomorrow, just no intense physical exercise. You don't need to worry, or disturb him. Okay?" Roach nodded, wishing Doc a good night and walking out into the dimming night. It was early by the standards of base, and Roach seemed to be the only one thinking about sleeping. Archer was walking in the direction of the mess hall with Toad. Roach waved to them, getting a small one in return. Roach walked to his room and slipped into the dark room. He usually would have undressed or something before falling into bed, but not today. He just fell in and shut his eyes for a moment. His mind began to swirl into thoughts of Ghost and Alison for a few moments. What was going on between them? He had warned Alison to stay away from him, and he had expected Ghost to stay away from her, but he almost seemed to be seeking her out. It was strange. If Alison did want to talk to Ghost or anything, why was she hiding it from him? Why would she want to or need to, for that matter? It was a strange thing. What if they were planning something? Just as the thought entered into his head, Roach shot bolt upright at the sound of a high pitched scream coming from far away. It sounded like a girl, and more importantly, like Alison.

Roach was out of bed like a bolt of lightning, not even bothering with shoes as he charged at a sprint out of the barracks and the short distance to the infirmary. He threw the door open with such force it nearly broke the door off the hinges. He ran down the hall and to her room, throwing the door open. The screaming had just stopped a few seconds earlier. Over the sound of something that sounded like crying, there was raucous laughter. Roach was greeted by the sight of three men, Ozone, Meat, and Chemo, all laughing and practically rolling around on the floor. Roach looked to Alison, who was sitting upright in bed, pale and with a few tears streaking down her face. Roach screamed his own choice words at Ozone and the others before yelling actual words at them. "What the hell are you thinking? What did you do?" Ozone was practically wiping away tears of laughter. "We gave her a scare, that's what we did! We knew you would come, and we knew she would freak out. Priceless!" Roach threw a few more profanities at them before pushing Ozone aside and going over to Alison. Her breath was coming in little gasps. "Are you okay?" Roach asked quietly, concerned. What had they done to scare her so bad? She swallowed. "I-I was just about to fall asleep, when I heard the door a little. I didn't think anything, because this place has weird noises at night. Well, I thought I heard footsteps, and suddenly I felt someone breathing really close. I opened my eyes and I saw this huge guy with a knife standing over me, with this crazy smile. I- I'm sorry I screamed." Roach gently put a hand on her back. "It's okay, you should have. Never be silent when something like that happens. I'm sorry about them." Alison nodded, while Roach turned back on the three who were still letting the last of their laughter die away. Roach walked over to Ozone, trying to get in the man's face, as much as he could being as short as he was. "What the fuck was that all about?" Ozone looked down at him with a smirking mischief in his face. "Like I said, just wanted to see what would happen, not that we didn't know-" At that, Roach gave Ozone a powerful right hook across the jaw, not caring that there was a small arch of blood coming from the man's mouth as he fell. Ozone righted himself using the wall before he could fall all the way. There was no laughter anymore. Ozone got up, using the back of his hand to wipe away the trickle of blood coming from the edge of him mouth. "You will regret that. You will." Ozone started to advance on the smaller man, when the door opening again made them all freeze. "What the hell is going on here?" The voice was familiar. It was MacTavish.


	19. Coming Clean

**Here is the fourth, last, and much awaited update of today! Have you listened to those songs yet? Playing right now :3 I a happy person. Very. Now, just a few things, the notes I meant to give my hardcore readers : ) **

**Migisi-First of all, I love your stories! They rock, and I think I reviewed one, and I know for a fact I am going to review the rest. Love you. And why did I leave off there? Because why would my evil, scheming mind ever want anyone to be happy? JK, love you for reading! **

**Queenkhs-Yeah, awesome for reviewing. One thing- sweat is now dripping down my back. Once again, drone on into the land of personal things. I have never shown any work to anyone, cept a few of my real life best buddies ever (as in, I trust them with my life. No one else) and now with all you internet people, I am overwhelmed! When you gave me my first review, I actually screamed in happiness. You were the first person to review any of my stuff. Ever. I love you for that and will never forget you! So, back to the review. I love how you are specific, which is great. I like that, so I know what to keep doing well. The only thing is, with me knowing that you like that in the back of my head, I am afraid that I will screw it up for you! SO feel free to tell me if you don't like how things are going.**

**That is it! This is a longish for me chapter, so sorry! Oh, and have you noticed how creative I have made all of my chapter titles? Xl**

To Roach's relief, Ozone stopped advancing. Everyone in the room froze, and a hush came over them MacTavish walked stiffly in and shut the door. "I said, what the hell is going on?" Ozone was the first to speak up, the trickle of blood continuing to snake down his chin from the corner of his mouth. "Nothing, sir. I just wanted to pay a visit to Alison with Meat and Chemo. Things got physical, as you can see." MacTavish turned to a frozen Roach. "Roach, how about you?" He growled. Roach swallowed, feeling a bead of cold sweat fall down the side of his face in a slow procession. "Sir, they came here specifically to scare Alison. I was merely defending her." Ozone glared at Roach, and Roach wanted to stick his tongue out like a child would. Rather, though, he kept his eyes on MacTavish. The large man turned to Alison. "Now, which one of these fools are right?" Alison paled even further, if it was possible, to Roach's concern. She shot him a look, and he nodded. He knew that in this case, she would tell the truth, but Roach was afraid if she did, Ozone would only plot a way to revenge. Roach pushed the thought away, and nodded to her. All that mattered was here and now. He watched as she swallowed, and nodded, her voice small and hushed. "Roach is telling the truth." MacTavish glared at Ozone and the others with malice in his eyes. "You three, come with me. Now." The thing was, he didn't yell this. Instead, he used a hushed and growling voice, which only added to the scariness. The three walked out, herded by an angry MacTavish. Roach sighed in relief as the door clicked shut. Now he could worry about Alison.

He walked over to her. "Are you okay?" He asked her. She nodded, the color beginning to come back to her face a little. "I think so. Just, they scared me." A gruff sound, like a chuckle, came from Roach's throat. "Yeah, I know. That would have scared me too, though. Anyway, thanks for making sure MacTavish knew the truth." Her eyes grew wide, her voice still holding a bit of shock. "No problem. I mean, I couldn't let them beat you up! There where three of them, and one of you. It just wouldn't have ended well, I know. And anyway, now, what if they want revenge?" The funny thing was, Roach had been thinking the same thing. "I don't know about that right now. I will figure it out when I need to figure it out. As for you, though, I don't think that you being here alone is a good idea." Alison shook her head in agreement. Roach set his head in his palm for a minute. "I don't think it would be good for me to move in here, because, well, it just wouldn't work. Maybe we can get a cot set up for you in my and Ghost's room?" A little sound, a little like 'meep' came out of Alison's mouth. "Be in the same bedroom with- you?" Her voice held confusion and uncertainty. Roach couldn't blame her. If he was her, right now he would be acting the same way. "Yeah, I know. Not the most desirable option. But you would be safe there, and a cot is more comfortable than you would think." After a moment of silence, Alison relented. "Sure. I don't want a repeat of this." Roach nodded, agreeing.

It was only a little later when Roach finished getting the cot set up in the small room he shared with Ghost. The man had done quite a bit of mumbling when the light clicked on and the process of Alison moving in proceded. Roach kept checking her face for any sign that she was scared, but instead, he found thoughtful indifference. Ghost groaned and stuffed his head under his pillow. "Roach, get this the hell over with. I need to get up early." Roach shrugged. "Same time we do. Don't be such a pussy." This only got him a groan, when it normally would have got him a fist to the face, but this Ghost lay there. Out of the corner of his eye, Roach saw Alison glance at Ghost. Why? Roach didn't know, and he tried to force himself to not think about it. He grabbed the pillow he had brought from the infirmary and set it on the cot, along with a blanket he had found somewhere. Alison climbed into it, grabbing the blanket and putting it over herself. Roach turned off the light and climbed into his bed. He shut his eyes, thinking all was peaceful, when a loud sound ripped through the darkness. He heard a small cough from Alison, and then heard her small voice cut through the smell that was beginning to form "Now, I will not handle any of that. Okay?" Roach grinned. "Whatever." He muttered, and with a smirk on his face he heard the sigh from Alison. There was no more distractions for the rest of the night.

Ghost woke up early in the morning, earlier than the other day, meaning it was about two in the morning. His dreams had been nightmares. He had been stuck in a room full of mirrors, and anywhere he looked, he saw his face staring back at him, his scar peering at him. The images of himself suddenly switched to all of his friends, all looking at him. Roach stared at him, a bullet hole gaping in his chest. The image of Roach reached out a hand, his face looking like a child in pain. Ghost cried out and tried to run forward, catch him, help him, but Roach fell and faded. The same thing happened with each of the men of the 141, including MacTavish. Ghost screamed, the mirrors and bodies fading away and letting him stand alone in darkness. He screamed out, trying to see if anyone could here him. Suddenly, there was a red light in the distance. Ghost reached out to it, watched it grow closer, only to find to his despair it was a bonfire, nothing more. In a flash, the fire turned into a grinning, flaming skull. It laughed at Ghost as he shrieked, not yelled, but shrieked. Suddenly, the fire began to morph into the man who held the knife, the man who gave him his scars. Ghost yelled out, but he was immobile. The chuckling figure of fire got closer with his blade of flame until it slashed across Ghost's face, leaving an icy feeling rather than a hot and burning one. The cool feeling seeped through his body and all he could hear was his own screams and the chuckling of the grinning skull… It was a nightmare of the worst sorts. Ghost had sat bolt upright, sweat soaking his clothes and his sheets, and his hair. In a short exhale he lay back down. He closed his eyes again, but heard a strange sound that made him open them back up. It was soft, nearly squeaking sounds. He let his eyes adjust to the dark, and looked around the room for the source of the sound. He found it was coming from the small figure curled up on the cot. He swung his feet over the bed, but quietly, as not to disturb Roach. He whispered through the dark. "Hey." The crying stopped for a second, and a small sniffle followed. Through the dark, he saw a face turn his way. "Yeah?" Ghost was surprised at the tenderness of his voice. "What is it?" Another sniff. "You don't know? My parents died." "Oh" Was all that escaped Ghosts mouth before she nearly broke into tears again. Ghost was confused. He had something inside of him, like sympathy, but he didn't know what to do.

Something in him must have, though. For in a way that was very un Ghost like, he asked quietly "Maybe you want to take a walk? It's nice this time of day." Ghost wanted to slap himself. Where was this coming from? THe compassion he had buried years ago? Another sniff was all it took before the hesitant reply came, more in the form of a question that anything. "Sure?" Ghost slid down off the bunk, and waited by the door as there was a silent shuffle of cloth on cloth and the search for the crutches. They must have been found, for a few moments later, Alison was next to him. Ghost opened the door quietly, and the two went into the near pitch black hall. Alison muttered something, and Ghost looked down at her. "What is it?" She shook her head. "Its just I know I'll run into something." Ghost let out a chuckle softly, something he hadn't done in a while. "I'll give you fair warning, how about that?" He got a sound of approval in return as the two walked down the long hall and to the doors. Ghost politely held them open. Alison and he walked through, and Alison waited for him to follow after her. The two walked, like father and daughter, through the dark and cool stillness of base. He heard Alison take a deep breath in. "You were right. It is nice this time of day." Ghost shrugged. "I guess so." Then the two continued in the silence. Abruptly, Ghost felt waves of something, something like tension coming off of Alison. He knew what was coming. Something knew it was coming when he asked her to walk with him. He wanted to finish what they had started. And he was right.

"So? Why?" Ghost huffed. "Why what?" His reply was careful, paced. "Why do you feel like you need to be the hero for all of them?" Ghost swallowed. He had never thought about it before. Though, when he did, he thought of his own awful experiences. He replied as the words and thoughts came to him. Thinking out loud. "I guess you could say, I never want them to get hurt like I did. I mean, I always hated the fact of my scars. Never wanted anyone to think or act different because of them. I hated that, so I hid. I was always striving to be the best, the first, the first to be out. I never wanted anyone to guess my secret. I guess it earned me a reputation that I couldn't withhold without it. I guess me hiding my secrets made me who I was." The voice that returned his emotional let out was a soft one, a motherly one. "Well, that makes sense. You were the bravest and the best to prove to them your looks didn't dictate who you were, though in truth, that is just what you were doing. I feel so bad for you. You are the best, and the bravest, but you are judged because your looks and trauma made you who you were." Ghost looked at her. "You're right. I tried one thing, to escape another, but ended up doing just that. I feel so stupid now. Everyone hates me, except Roach." Alison let out a disbeiving sound. "Really? You think that? Archer, Rook, and them, they look up to you. They were the ones who didn't give you death glares. The others still respect you though. Just try and be who you normally are. I think you are either over or underdoing whatever you acted like before. Just pretend you have the mask on. Be who you know you are." At this, Ghost found no words to follow the sweep of emotions that churned in his gut. He had to be who he was, to make others forget who he was. If that made any sense? The two walked the perimeter of base camp in silence, until they found themselves back at the barracks in a little under an hour. Alison wished him farewell and went back to the room, Ghost shutting the door behind her. He had to think about what she said. He had to be himself.


	20. Off The Deep End

**Will update with longer authors note another time. Just want you to have this now so you wait in anticipation!**

Roach woke to a finger prodding his rib. He opened his eyes and found himself looking into the increasingly familiar face of Ghost. "Wake up. Time to get to the pit." Roach shook his head confusedly. "What- Why you whisper?" He muttered back. Ghost hissed a single word into his ear. "Alison" Roach woke up at the sound of her name. "Oh, yeah." Ghost poked him harder, Roach feeling the pinch of his skin. "Ow, fine, I'm going." Ghost gave a sound of approval and walked out of the room. Roach peered at Alison. She was lying partially on her side, the blanket slipped down around her shoulder. Her mouth was partially open, and her eyes flickered beneath the lids. Roach let a smile cross his lips and his mind. She was pretty cute when she slept. He walked out of the room, making sure she hadn't stirred when he shut it. He thought that he would walk into the hall and go into the pit. What he found instead was anything but a warm welcome. He walked straight into the muscular barrel chest of Ozone.

Roach swore lightly as a fist wrapped around his neck, and another grab his collar. The oxygen deprivation came as a shock to Roach, and he felt himself lifted into the air, his feet dangling inches off the ground. Suddenly he noticed that Ozone was backed by Meat and Chemo, both with angry expressions on their faces. Roach would have swallowed if his throat wasn't being throttled by Ozone. The man put his angry face, breath soaked in alcohol, right up to Roach. "Listen, Roach. You are going to regret that last night, and that girl is going to regret it too. I don't even want to name our various punishments we got. It is awful, you know. I will get you. One day. Today, tomorrow. I don't know. But I would be looking over my back if I were you." Ozone let his choke hold on Roach go, dropping him in a heap on the floor. The air Roach sucked into his lungs was some of the sweetest he had ever tasted. Ozone planted a heavy foot on his back, pushing him into the floor. Roach coughed, losing all the oxygen he had just taken in. Ozone leaned down over him, whispering more menacing words. "And, I hear you're siding with Ghost. Maybe giving him some ideas for the slaughter he calls training. You will regret that, you know." Ozone lifted his boot off of Roach. He gasped like a fish out of water as the threesome walked away. Roach sat up slowly and painfully, massaging his throat. He surely would have bruises later, which would lead to questions, which would lead to more bruises. Roach got himself to stand on shaky feet, still coughing slightly. He somehow managed to get up the strength to walk to the pit, even though he knew what awaited him there.

Ghost stood over the pit again, this time in more light than the other day. He made them run the same courses as the other day, but with much more leniency. Toad showed up, still with a patch over the spot on his head and tape on his nose to keep it somewhat in place. Ghost watched with puzzlement as Ozone lined himself up behind Roach, who was next in line, then shoved him in the direction of the course as the horn sounded. Roach tripped, stumbled, and almost had a repeat of Toad's incident, but caught himself. Ghost let out a breath. What was that all about? He looked closer. There was a definite disunity between the men. A few of them were hanging towards Ozone, some like Meat, Chemo, Worm, and Rocket, while the others hung by Roach. It was like there was a tension, a war, with an unknown cause. Unknown to Ghost, anyway. It would be a while before Ghost guessed he was the cause. He heard the clicking of crutches behind him again. He didn't bother to turn his head as he knew who moments later, would be beside him. He heard her voice before she spoke to him. "What's up with them?" Ghost never took his icy blue eyes off of the course. "What do you mean?" He heard a snort, as if it was obvious. "Look at them. It's like they are children fighting over who gets the last piece of candy. Just much more serious. What's up?" Ghost shrugged, not wanting to verbalize his fears of another prank war. The last time that happened it was hell. Something told him though, this was more serious. "I don't know, really. I'll try and find out." He looked down at her for the first time that day. She had a mischievous and curious grin on her face. "Or, I could be your spy?..." Ghost nixed this right away. "No. Whatever is happening, I can guarantee you don't want to be in that shit." Alison nodded. Her voice was dripping with sarcasm as she spoke. "Sure. Of course." Ghost let his breath roll in a growl from the back of his throat. He heard a laugh, and was surprised to hear it coming from Alison. "See, that's what I'm talking about. That was some legit Ghost right there. Keep it up. I am going to get a snack. Tell Roach that's where I am so he wont flip out like a mother hen or anything." Ghost snorted. Not only was this kid like a counseler, and a freaking good one at that, she had a sense of humor. Ghost found himself liking her more and more every minute they were talking.

Eat. Game. Run. Eat. Game. Run. That was the order of events in Roach's day, and he couldn't complain. It was a pretty sweet life with Alison here. She got to watch him practice, they could eat and joke, then kill each others virtual characters. It was one of the best few days Roach had ever had. And now, this third day was drawing to an end. Ghost was still locking himself in his room or playing cards alone in a corner, but it was an improvement. Besides, Roach had even gotten him to glare at him and growl today. Roach knew that it had only been a few days without it, but it was enough to cheer him up. It was great to know the Ghost he knew was still in there. Sure, the 'new' Ghost part of him worked their shorts off in the pit, but Roach couldn't complain. It meant less of a chance that Ozone would do anything to him. Well, more than he could. Roach had been pushed flat on his face, hit with the butt of a gun, and a few more 'incidents' staged by Ozone. Now, though, it was the end of the day. The sun was dimming in the sky, dropping below the horizon, and once again, Roach was going to bed early. This new Ghost was a no slack no excuses with the same old prickly barrier. Roach clicked off the light, hearing two simaltanious sighs as Ghost and Alison shifted in their beds, ready to sleep. Roach closed his eyes too. He was confident if anything happened, he as the lightest sleeper, would be there for it. This was a normal night, right?

Funny, wasn't it, no one woke when the door creaked open? That no one saw the hulking form slip into the room and clap a hand over the sleeping girls mouth so even her shrillest scream sounded like nothing more than a breath? How did no one see this form pick her up, struggling, from the cot, and carry her to the hall where three others were waiting? How was it that they were able to carry her to the firing range, duct tape her hands and mouth, and put her at the end with a few of the human shaped targets, tha seemed to be Roach sized? Did no one see this, or notice before the screaming? In task force 141? Hard to believe, but true.

Roach was snapped out of a light sleep by the familiar screams. They resounded through the camp like wailing spirits, bouncing off of everything. Roach once again jumped to his feet, frantically checking the cot for the sleeping form he knew should be there? How had this happened? He would look back on this later and realize he should have woken Ghost, but rage filled his veins so strong that he couldn't think of anything but getting Alison, and getting his own revenge on them. He sprinted out of the doors, into the dark midnight night, and stopped still as soon as he got outside. The screams had quieted a bit, and Roach strained his ears to pinpoint it. He darted from place to place, but finally found the main point they were coming from- The firing range. Roach charged like a stray bullet off to the range, the screams fading as he got to them. He paused, trying to see her. A faint scream came again, from the back of the course. He rushed there, calling her name. He got no response. He saw the last ten feet of the course nearing him, and still didn't see Alison, only a black box taped to a target in the middle of the stretch. Roach panted, not out of tiredness, but fear and frustration. Where was she? What was happening? Suddenly, a shape exploded out of the shadow next to him. Something like a flying bear hit him, and all he saw before he got a decent knockout punch to the head was glowing brown eyes of Ozone.

**Not my best work, a few of the paragraphs bother me. May fix them, may not. I hope you all don't mind. Once again, to my 'hardcore' readers, I hope that this doesn't leave you gasping for breath XD Will continue to update through tomorrow, another one tonight is a one in a million chance, sorry!**


	21. Broken Man

**Once again, short note. Now this is a short chapter, really short, and forgive me at the end! Warning-This is why it is rated T, aside from swearing.**

When Roach woke, he was tied with duct tape to a human shaped target that was just his size. He had a knot growing where the punch had been dealt, and it throbbed like nothing else. He cursed under his breath. What was happening? Surely, courtesy of Ozone and the others. Sure, he was right. Once his vision had focused, standing in front of him was Ozone, Meat, Chemo, Worm, Scarecrow, and Rocket. All of them looked extremely mad and set on revenge. Roach tried frantically to tug on the tape binding him, which only caused laughter to rise from the crowd in front of him. Roach grit his teeth. Whatever was waiting for him wasn't pretty. Ozone stepped forward, his face a menacing mask of fury bent on revenge. His voice was a shallow snake like hiss when it spoke, Roach wanting to jump back and away. "So, Roach, about to be beaten running after his little sister, huh? Daughter, even? How sweet. Well, she isn't here right now. Sorry to inform you." Roach tried to open his mouth, but found he had duct tape covering that also. How hadn't he noticed that before? Ozone laughed again, sounding like something from a horror movie. "Now, sorry about that too. Have to make sure this stays, you know, within this little area. Wouldn't want news of this slipping out. Well, not that this is news. The only news there is going to be is how a young man in task force 141 was up late night in the training course, slipped on the stairs, suffered devastating breaks and bruises, eventually dying at the bottom before morning comes. Oh, yes, Roach, I am that angry." Roach felt his eyes widen. They were going to kill him? Kill? Roach struggled once more. "Oh no" The voice hissed again. "It is too late for that."

Roach knew it was. He was a goner. A long rod that looked like a metal pipe was tossed from Worm's hand right to Ozone, who held it like a bat. He looked at Roach for a second, mockingly, pretending it was hard to pick a place. He decided on the arm, and took a swing. Roach felt stars explode through his body as a metal pipe smashed down on his arm, the snapping of bone the only sound that you could hear in the near silent range in the dead of night. Ozone only laughed and stepped aside to let Worm step up. "I bet you are confused now" the ex-navy SEAL's voice scratched. "Why. We are all sick of you and Ghost being best friends, all the time. You get chosen to be with him all the time. That's it, jealousy. Oh, and that whole the mask coming off thing. That has pissed us all off big time. He is a coward, and you still stand by him like he belongs. Now, he is working us to death. Thank you so much, worthless Roach." With that, Worm slammed his fist into the unsuspecting side of Roach. It was too bad the duct tape was blocking his screams, because

If they weren't, he would be rescued. People on the other side of the world would have been able to hear him.

Roach had lost count of how many rounds. One? Two? Thirty? Each man had come, taken a swing, or a bat, in Ozone's case, making sure he got their reason for hating him. The pain was excruciating. Roach had broken bones before, but always one at a time. Never two arms and a leg (once again, thanks to the metal pipe) and possibly a few ribs. Roach tensed as Rocket stepped up again, and took a swing at his face. Roach knew it didn't take much for a nose to break. Well, there was more than "not much" behind this fist, and Roach heard it snap the same time he felt the pain. Tears came to his eyes for the first time that miserable evening, the blood beginning to pour freely down his face. It fell to the dust on the ground in drops and rivets, making it appear a dark brown. Roach wanted to gag. It all hurt so much. Ozone laughed along with the rest of the group, explaining in a fairly loud voice. "Glad to know your face is going to look like your precious Ghost's so soon. Isn't it?" Roach could barely distinguish the words through the white pounding that filled his head. One thought kept coming to him- Why aren't I unconscious? This was a question that Roach could not answer. He felt like a lamb set for slaughter, a man strung up to crucify, here on a target, beaten to death. It was a pretty pathetic way to go.

Roach was still in the foggy land of near black out when he heard a familiar sound. That soft, swishing sound that alerted one to a knife slipping out of its sheath. Roach peeled open the eyes his body was telling him to shut Ozone was right by him. "I don't care if your death doesn't seem so accidental anymore. I just want you do get what's coming for you." With that, Roach had no time to prepare for the blade of a knife to sink into his cheek, and drag down in the shape of Ghost's scar. Roach screamed through the tape, as loud as he could with it, trying to voice the fiery pain that filled his whole being from the liquid flame that was on his face. Ozone laughed as Roach shut his eyes, trying to block out the pain. Suddenly, as the knife was poised to make another mark, a familiar voice screamed into the space around them. "Get the hell away from him or die!" The voice snapped Roach away from the black abyss that threatened to claim him. He knew that voice… Didn't he?


	22. Tears Of A Ghost

**Meep! I thought this would be ready a few hours earlier, but apparently I forgot about many plans today :/ So, most of all, to Queenkhs, I FRICKIN LOVE YOU! You give me a review with every chapter, even though I updated like five times yesterday! I am sorry you had that cliffhanger for nearly a whole day! I am so so so so so sorry, and this chapter is for you! And, as an FYI, I have no beta. Neva said that before, sorry. I might be getting one though :3**

Ghost held the gun in steady hands. He felt the rest of his body shaking in uncontrollable rage, but he kept his hands steady. His voice was low and steady when he spoke, and that made it even more scary. Ozone looked at him with wide and crazed eyes. "Ozone, set the knife down, or I swear to God I will kill you." Ozone kept the scary smile on his face, but set the knife down at Roach's feet, putting his hands up in the air. Ghost growled at the others around them. "All the rest of you, go on now. I will deal with you later. Trust me, you will regret this. Don't think you are getting off easy." None of the others needed a second word before running past him, surely to the direction of the barracks. It didn't matter to Ghost right now though. He had Ozone and Roach to worry about. Ghost picked Ozone first. He walked up to the brown eyed man. "Why?" Was the one word that Ghost could breathe out without losing control completely. "It was you Ghost. You." Was the cackling response that came out of his mouth. Ghost let out a yell and whacked Ozone incredibly hard with the side of the gun. A crack resonated through the range as Ozone crumpled to the ground. Ghost set the gun on the ground and knelt by him. The man, somehow, was still conscious. Ghost grabbed his shirt collar in a fit of anger. "Why? Why?"

Ghost was more angry that he had been in a long time. He had been pretty angry lately, but not this angry. This was a whole new place for his anger. He only bashed Ozone's head back into the ground as the man continued to laugh, ever answering the questions that Ghost threw at him. Finally, in black rage, Ghost punch the man straight on in the face while slamming his head back into the ground. The chuckling ceased immediately. Ghost took a panting, rage filled breath, standing up, letting the blood roll down Ozone's face. He rushed the few feet over to Roach, who was hanging on the target by strands of duct tape. Ghost quickly ripped the tape off of his mouth, whispering the words "Hey, it's okay. I'm here now. Got your back, you know? Oh god, don't die on me!" Ghost grabbed the knife on the ground that was streaked with his friend's blood, cutting loose all of the thing that held Roach on the target. The last piece that had held a broken arm up came away, and Roach fell like a limp body into Ghost's arms. Ghost caught him and went to the ground, holding the bleeding and bruised face in his lap. "Oh, god, Roach, damn it don't die on me! I told you I have your back. You had mine. You took this for me. The least you can do is live, to make it worth it!" The words were screamed in despair at the limp form in his arms. There was a rise and fall of the chest, but so faint and shallow, Ghost feared if he left for a moment they would cease. He bent his body, shaking with silent sobs over Roach, his young friend. So much, for so little… He heard a voice shout in the distance just then, one calling out to him. "Roach! Ghost! Hang in there, Doc is coming!" Ghost took in a breath as he realized who the voice was. It was MacTavish, come to help them. Come to the rescue, if it wasn't too late for Roach. The only problem is, that is what Ghost feared the most.

Ghost kept whispering to Roach, words of encouragement, as the breaths grew softer and softer. The thunder of MacTavish's footsteps came closer and closer, but Ghost never took his eyes off of the limp body he held. He gently touched Roach's hair, unsure of how to help. "Come on, you have to make it!" MacTavish was then suddenly beside him. "Ghost, what happened?" Ghost only used his free hand to point to Ozone. MacTavish made a shocked sound. "Ozone?" Ghost nodded, squinting his eyes tightly shut. He had just seen the curving cut that Ozone had etched into Roach's cheek, one to match his own. More footsteps quickly followed. MacTavish let out a sigh. "Doc's here. Don't worry Ghost, Roach is going to fine." Ghost felt his muscles tense. He would have to let Roach go for now. Let Doc take care of him. Doc, Royce, and Archer came up beside them, Archer and Royce carrying an old fashioned army stretcher. Doc knelt down on the other side of Roach. Ghost felt MacTavish's large hand grip his shoulder. The soft and rough voice came to him through everything he was feeling. "Come on now, mate. You have to let him go. You can see him soon. Just let go." Ghost took a deep breath in. "No, I can't let him go. He was there for me. I can't let him go." MacTavish's grip grew stronger. "Mate, you need to let go. He needs treatment." Ghost just found a tear slip down his face. His voice was a yell when he spoke. "Oh, God dammit you don't understand Soap! It's my fault this happened to him! I can't leave him to suffer what I caused him!" He felt a hand grasp his other shoulder and pull him away from his bruised and broken friend. Ghost was the second strongest on base. Second to MacTavish. He struggled against the man's grip, trying to get to his friend as he was picked up, put on the stretcher, and carried away. Ghost screamed, not caring how much he sounded like a child. MacTavish let him go, and Ghost turned around.

Ghost felt his voice reduced to a whimper. What side of him was this? "Oh God" He whispered, sinking to the ground. MacTavish caught him as he began to slip down. The incredibly sure voice reached to him. "Ghost, listen. It's not your fault. It wasn't you who did this to him. He is going to be fine. He's a Roach, remember? He doesn't die. He wouldn't do that. He wouldn't, because of you. Stand up, come one. It's not your fault." Ghost took in a short, shallow breath. "No, it is my fault. It's because of whom I am that Ozone hated him. It's because of me, and how he trusted me still that he got this. They thought that if he trusted a coward he was one himself." MacTavish helped Ghost stand steady as he swayed where he was. "You can't think like that, mate. He will be fine. If you want someone to hate, look at Ozone, not yourself." MacTavish looked to the still body lying by the target. "That bastard is the one you want to blame. He was the one who did this." Ghost nodded. "You're right. It's his fault. What are we going to do with him? Death is too easy for what he did to Roach." MacTavish let him go, clapping a hand on his shoulder in grim certainty. "I wish I could agree, mate. But, the thing is, that is very illegal. We will put him in one of the cells. When he wakes up, we will see what he has to say." Ghost nodded. He had to do this. For Roach. In the hope he would wake up. For the girl. Wait, the girl?

Ghost let the thought enter his mind, freezing. He turned to MacTavish. "Bloody hell, we can worry about him in a little bit! The girl, she was taken. I don't know what happened to her." A look of worry crossed the faces of the two. MacTavish scratched his chin. "Where would she be? Where could she be?" Ghost growled. "Anywhere. Everywhere." MacTavish turned his head, scanning the range. "We can check here first. Look everywhere." The two of them immediately parted, searching behind the targets. MacTavish headed back up to the front of the range, while Ghost began to explore the small bit around them. He thought he heard a sound, a muffled one, and followed it to the space behind a rather large target. The small girl was deposited there, her wrists and ankles bound with tape around her mouth. Ghost dropped down, pulling his knife out and cutting the tape away. He gently pulled the tape away, her sobs breaking free. She was in a spot where she could have seen the whole thing. There was a short span of surprise when the small figure launched itself into him, sobbing. He felt the small arms wrap around his neck, her small face bury into his shoulder. Her sobs went into his chest, and in a strong wave of emotion, he wrapped his own arms around her. There they sat, together, on the ground, crying yet comforting each other at the same time.


	23. Wasting Away

**Warning-If you do not like cliffhangers, do not read this! Do not read past this! Well, now that we have that out of the way, here we go. This takes place over a month. The time change will be obvious, I promise. I just didn't want to write every day out like I have been doing. It would have been stupid and bulky. So, instead, I just included what was important. I think you will like it. Well, maybe. See what my evil mind can think up, by reading below : )**

***The next morning, after sleepless hours with Alison and MacTavish***

Ghost paced outside of the room for maybe the hundredth time. Alison and MacTavish were by his side as they had been the whole night, waiting with anticipation. The hope that Doc would walk out of the room with a smile on his face, good news in hand. The door clicked, and all three figures froze and turned towards it. The world was a cruel place, wasn't it? Ghost knew this as Doc's downcast face appeared in front of him. Ghost rushed for the door, but Doc held up a hand. "Wait." His voice was grim. "I can't even begin to describe what he has suffered. Internal bleeding, bruised and broken ribs, two broken arms, and a broken leg. Broken nose, possible concussion." Ghost got closer to the door. "Well, is he awake? How is he?" Ghost knew that Doc would have placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, had he not been a head shorter. "Listen, Ghost." He began. "I know this has been- Hard, for you. He is in a coma, Ghost. I don't know how badly." Ghost felt his eyes grow wide. The news hit him like a mallet to his chest. "A- Coma? Are you fucking with me?" Doc shook his head again. "Ghost, you need to calm down. Yes, he is in a coma. I don't know how badly. He could wake up tomorrow, in a week, never. I don't know. We should get him to a better hospital though. It might be a week before we could get the transportation though. I don't think he should have any visitors" Ghost backed slowly away from door, his face a mixture of shock and disbelief. A coma? Guilt seeped into him like nothing else. Even if Roach woke up, he would never trust him or like him again. If he woke up. If. The word hurt him. Covered in a mask of confusion and hurt, he stumbled like he was sick back to the barracks, Alison shuffling after him in her own defeat. Ghost would prefer a bullet any day this hurt. He got to his room, and collapsed on the bed. He cried.

***Three days later. Ghost hasn't slept, neither has Alison. Ozone was talked to, mental health dubbed flawed. Will be discharged in another day. Roach still in a coma. No one has done any training. Nothing has happened. Ghost, pained beyond belief inside, is slowly falling into a coma of sorts on his own.***

Ghost sat in the hall outside of Roach's room in the infirmary. His eyes were glazed, peering at the door he knew his friend lay behind. He let his head cloud with thoughts. Why hadn't he gotten there to help him in time? Why had Ozone picked on Roach instead of him? Why couldn't he get and wake up? Ghost hadn't eaten. He was in too much pain inside. No one except MacTavish and Alison had seen him like this. He wouldn't allow it. His thoughts switched to MacTavish just as the man came down the hall. Ghost turned his head up to face him. MacTavish looked down at him. "Mate, you aren't getting anything done. You aren't helping him at all. Besides, I have a mission I need you to lead. More intel, and this time, we are sure it isn't a trap. You are leading Archer and Royce, and you should be gone a little over a day. Now, this is an order." The last words were taught and full of iron, the only thing that made Ghost even attempt to get up. MacTavish patted his back when he did finally get to his feet. "That's it. You can get that intel, and you know what, how about we say you're doing this for Roach? Continuing to work is what he would have wanted." Ghost wanted to reply, and felt the miserable words on his tongue. He thought about speaking, but held the words back. Roach couldn't speak, and Ghost couldn't speak for him. Not now anyway. Instead, he gave a curt nod, and walked down the hall. Even though he knew he should be thinking about the mission, Ghost let his mind drift back to Roach and his misery. That was a dangerous thing in the line of fire. Ghost knew it. Yet, he let it happen.

***Five hours later***

Ghost winced as Archer yelled at the top of his lungs "Tango down!" Ghost fired another round at the few Russian's advancing. They had the intel. It was an easy grab. Empty building, only a few people guarding it on the outside. It was no problem. For Archer and Royce anyway. Ghost had been truly somewhere else the whole time. The helicopter ride there, the way to the building, and each round he fired. He was thinking about how he might not have enough courage to keep on going, prove the coward he was. Archer pushed him forward to a fork in the road. "Ghost, which way? ETA of bird is ten minutes." Ghost only put his mind partially to the task. Which way? Roach started with an R, so he blurted out "Right" Archer made a puzzled sound. "We picked up more hostiles that way than anywhere else. You sure you want to go that way?" Ghost whipped around, yelling. "Don't question my orders! We're going right!" Ghost saw Archer and Royce exchange a look, but he paid them no attention. He just reloaded and moved down the street to the right.

Ghost cursed gently. Archer had been right. There were more of those Russian suckers down this way than he had seen in a while. Round after round, they fired into the growing mass of people. Royce screamed over the sound of gunfire. "ETA six minutes!" Ghost yelled back to him. "We'll make it!" Archer didn't reply to either of the comments. Ghost usually would have felt adrenaline pumping through him, urging him forward. This time, he only had a deep feeling of dread in his gut, and a part of him that wished a bullet would hit him and end his miserable life. Ghost knew that Roach would never have doubted him. But, he also knew that Roach wasn't here right now. He was in a coma back at base because of him. Ghost felt a hand push him forward. "Bird will be here in three minutes! We're almost there!" Ghost was in miserable delirium as they ran forward, Archer sometimes having to push him along. "Come on Ghost! ETA one minute!" Ghost didn't even know what was keeping his feet moving. They ran the final stretch, getting to the chopper just as it was about to take off. There were bullets coming from behind them. Royce and Archer jumped in, Ghost pulling himself in after them. Bullets clanged off the metal of the helicopter as it took off. Archer gave Ghost a look, but the man was already as far away as one could get in a helicopter, staring off into space with glazed eyes.

*** It's been nearly a month. They nearly flubbed that mission, and Ghost knew it. He gave the intel to MacTavish and went back to sit by Roach's door. He hadn't moved for a week, to the point where Doc gave an order for him to sleep. He slept outside of the room. Officially, one week later, the medics from another hospital, bigger than most, came to get him. They saw him, wrapped and bandaged, and declared nothing could be done except to wait. They said he could have visitors. Ghost sat there every day, talking to him, sleeping by the bedside, never caring about what anyone thought. Whenever he was sent on a mission, he nearly flubbed it. Things were falling apart at the seams. Alison was still there, staying with him in the room with Roach most of the time. MacTavish barely talked to Ghost anymore. Now, on this day, Ghost was alone. Alison was sleeping. Ghost was feeling like he hit rock bottom.***

Ghost was in a near depressed hysteria. He was in the same spot, the chair by Roach's bed. The man had had the casts and bandages still on him, keeping his body together, it seemed, with nothing more than tape. His voice was soft and hysteric when he spoke. "You know, Roach, I remember the first time we met. I scared you so bad, and I know it. You freaked out a bit. I think you pissed your pants a bit. I know I was mean, but I grew to love you. You were like a brother. I mean, you were great. Always had my back. I always had yours." Ghost let out a fading sigh there. He trailed off. "Almost always. Other than that night. Oh, God, I don't know how many times I have said this. I am sorry buddy. It doesn't look like you are waking up, does it? I'm not giving up hope. I lost that a long time ago. You didn't die, I'll hand you that much. You're still Roach. Just, when you wake up, I'm not sure if I want to be here." Ghost had had a length of rope in his pocket from something earlier. He couldn't remember. It was long and thick, and his fingers absentmindedly began to twist it as he spoke. "I don't want to be here. I don't want to be such a disappointment to you. I don't want you to look at the date and go 'oh, that loser didn't help me in time' or anything like that. I don't want to be here as a living reminder of your misery. I will be as bad as my scars to you. Besides, you're going to have one like me now, so you won't even forget me then." It was true; The knife wound on Roach's cheek had healed to a faint, pink scar. "I was on a mission almost a month ago. I wanted a bullet to hit me. I really did. Wanted the misery of seeing you like this, my own feelings, all of it to just go away. It would be so easy, wouldn't it? Just let go?" As he said this, Ghost trailed off. In his hands he held a well-made noose. Ghost had seen the hook in the ceiling many times. He knew it was there. Now, he stood up on the chair, and tied the one end of the rope on it. The noose was just about head level. Ghost gave the rope a tug. It held. He looked at his friend. Roach was there, eyes closed. He looked like he was sleeping. Ghost slipped his head through the loop of rope, making sure it wasn't going to slip off. He looked at Roach once again. A month ago, no one would have thought him the suicidal type. Now, in this day, no one was sure. Ghost let one thought slip into his mind, and he spoke a few last words. "I loved you like a brother. I'm sorry" with that, Ghost let a smile cross his face, and he kicked the chair out from under himself.

**Okay, so I am obsessed with giving things theme songs. Ghost, in this chapter, and maybe the previous one, listen to the first part of the song "Surrender" by Skillet. It fits how he is perfectly. Only the first like, minute thirty seconds though. Sorry for the cliffie, will have one more certain update tonight! **

**Dancing Tiger, out! :3**


	24. Road To Recovery

**Short note, as I have to go do something now. Didn't want to leave you with a cliffie! (Well, not one like that. This is one too, just as a warning.) Enjoy!**

When one is in a coma, and they are waking up, a few things happen. First, they get their sense of smell back. Things begin to open up. Then, they are able to hear. It only takes a minute after that for them to be able to see, and the mind function and put things together. Then, the vocal cords become un-paralyzed. Roach had just opened up as Ghost was speaking to him. Saying he was sorry. He heard the words, but didn't comprehend all the way. The voice was familiar, he knew that. Then, his eyes peeked open an imperceptible amount as the clattering of something rung out. He saw Ghost hanging, a nearly peaceful look on his face, swinging from a noose. He tried to get himself to scream, force his near dormant body to get something out. He couldn't. His tongue felt like sandpaper in his mouth, his throat dry as sand, and his vocal cords unwilling to work. Roach saw the life slipping away, out of his mentor, his friend. He tried to summon the will to swallow, but he couldn't. He suddenly gasped in a deep breath, with strength he didn't know he had. He suddenly found he could speak, the weight on his chest lifted. "Help!" He cried. It was soft, very soft, but it was enough. It was enough. He heard the footsteps of Doc running down the hall, and burst into the room. The man let out a cry, rushing to a cabinet on the other side of the room the second he saw Ghost. It took no time for the man to grab a scalpel, right the chair, and cut the rope. Ghost dropped like a dead weight to the floor. Roach looked at the doctor, already down by Ghost's side. The man let out a sigh. Doc seemed to be talking to himself. "He's still breathing. He'll be fine. He's passed out, but he'll be fine." Doc stood up, looking at Roach. "Oh!" The man shouted, a sound sweet to Roach's ears. Doc smiled. "So, you're up." Roach nodded, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

Roach was allowed everything upon waking up. The IV's were taken out, he was allowed water, but no food quite yet. Roach was allowed to sit up, and wait with anxiety. MacTavish and the others came to his room, all in a storm. He had never seen them happier. MacTavish stood at the front of the crowd, a ridiculous smile on his face. "Roach, good to have you back!" Roach smiled "How long have I been out?" MacTavish's face fell. "Almost, or a little over, a month." Roach thought his eyes were going to pop out of his head. "A month?" He croaked. "Yeah." Roach swallowed. "Well, how's Ghost? How have things been?" MacTavish sighed, like a heavy weight had been placed on his shoulders. "Things around here? I hope you remember Ozone is the one who did this. The others were just there because he blackmailed them. Ozone was discharged a week after what he did to you because of mental stability issues. As for Ghost, he has been blaming himself for everything. He has been slipping into a depression, saying you would hate him for what he did and didn't do for you. He thought you would never want to look at him again." Roach was stunned. "He thought that? How? He is like family. You all are. It would kill me to lose him." MacTavish sighed "And I think that's what had him. He thought he lost you forever. It was killing him slowly. I guess he had had enough." Roach swallowed. He never thought that things would get as bad as this. He never would have dreamed it. His brow knotted. "Alison?" MacTavish sighed again. "Kid, things have happened when you were out. Ozone got her, taped her up, and left her lying where she could see what they did to you. I think that has given her worse trauma to think about. All she has done is sit here, looking at you, play video games, or sleep. Nothing else. She was like Ghost, only smaller. It was pitiful. She will be glad to see you." You could practically see the increase of light in Roach's eyes. "Can I see her? Now?" Finally, MacTavish smiled. "Sure. She's right her." And as if on cue, Alison appeared in the door, her crutched gone, still wearing Roach's clothes. Her face transformed into one of shock when she saw him. Her eyes bugged out of her head, her draw dropped open, and she took in a breath. When Roach smiled at her, she smiled back with a shining face, and light eyes. "Roach!" She cried out. She ran over to him, and looked ready to give him a hug. After looking at him for a moment, she decided against it. Roach smiled as she spoke in a hyperactive enthusiastic voice "I can't believe you're awake! I'm so happy!" Roach blinked, not caring there was an audience. "Yeah, me too."

Roach and everyone, really, took some time to catch up. A few were apologies from those, such as Meat, Chemo, Royce, and Worm. Roach could see it in their eyes that they were sorry. He forgave them with a full heart. He and Alison talked, and so did he and MacTavish. Most of the talk was about Ghost. Roach had been terrified to see Ghost hanging like a puppet from the ceiling. If things were bad enough for Ghost, the brave and stoic man he used to know, to commit suicide, things must have gone really bad. MacTavish herded everyone else but Alison out of the room. He sat down in the chair but the cut rope. "Listen, Roach." MacTavish looked at him with trusting and thoughtful eyes. "I know you said you didn't know how it would get this bad. I didn't know either. But, I was thinking about letting Ghost go. Discharge him. His mental health was slipping slowly, and he was no longer the same man. He was always drunk, but on emotions rather than booze. He was killing himself. I know that he was just starting to return to the man you knew before that day. He has gone so far from that, I can't describe it. I am worried that he will never be the same. Never be the man you knew." A deep intake of breath was all that could be heard. Roach squeezed his eyes shut. "I can't believe it. I know he is in there somewhere. I can help him. Is he up yet?" MacTavish shrugged. "I don't know. Just, please. Think about that. Rest up. I don't want you crushed when you see him." Roach nodded, and MacTavish walked out of the room. "Hey, Alison?" He said softly. "Yeah?" She replied happily. "Can you sew?" This gave him a raised eyebrow, but he needed an answer. "Yes, kind of." She replied. Roach smiled. "Good. I have a favor to ask you later. Not now." Another eyebrow, and he also got 'the look.' Just then, Doc walked in. "Ghost can come in to see you now." He said. Roach nodded. "Hey, Alison?..." She smiled. "I know. I will be back to see you later though." She walked out, and a second later, Ghost walked back in. Roach couldn't do anything but smile, a small, sad smile. It was time to make amends.

**Peece Yalls! **


	25. Finding Ghost

**Hey, sorry, must be weird not to have had an update after my psycho like once every hour update thing over the weekend… I have a life too though! As I said, updates will be regular, and this is pretty regular I hope. Once every day or so… Almost done with this, a few chapters to go! Maybe only one or two… Just want to clear things up. This is not slash. Thanks :-)**

Roach kept the smile on his face as a stunned Ghost walked in. Roach felt his heart sting. Ghost looked like a drunk, a broken man. He had bags under his blue eyes; his cheeks were pale and drooping. His lips were only a thin, colorless line on his face. The blue, defeated eyes widened as Ghost continued to look at Roach. The deep voice was music to Roach's ears, but it was tired, defeated, and maybe a hint mad. "Is that you? Are you really awake?" Roach blinked. "Yeah, buddy, I am." Ghost's breath began to come in deep gasps, and he collapsed in the chair by the bed. "You're awake. You're awake, I can't believe it…" Ghost's head dropped into his hands, his body wracked by small sobs. Now it was Roach's turn to open his eyes wide. He had never seen Ghost cry, and now he was sobbing, practically bawling. Roach whispered tentatively. "Hey, Ghost? You don't need to cry, you know. I'm fine. I'm truly fine." Ghost brought his sick looking face up from his hands. His voice, once stoic and rough, was reduced to nothing more than a whimper. "You'll forgive me? Are you forgiving me?" It hurt Roach to see him like this. It really did. He could only begin to imagine the psychological things that had happened to Ghost while he was in his slumber. Now, he just wanted to say 'sure, I'll forgive you!' just for the sake of taking that pain away. But Roach knew he had to do more than that. He had to get Ghost back on his feet. Now. Roach cleared his throat. "I will forgive you Ghost, on one condition." The light that flooded into Ghost's eyes was like a train in a tunnel. Ghost had an eager, begging look in his eyes. "What is it? What? Anything!" Roach let the small smile fade. "I know I wasn't here for you in a long time. I can't imagine how you felt. I am sorry to have left you like that. I hate to see you like this. I just want you to promise me, promise that you will try hard to get back up. Be Ghost again. Put this behind you." This caused a look of defeat to come across Ghost's face. "But how, Roach? How can I be Ghost again? I don't even think I know who he was in the first place. How can I be someone who I'm not?" Roach put another sad, small smile on his face. "Ghost, it's in you. I know it. You just have to find it." With those words, as if their minds were in sync, the two embraced. Roach felt a tear of happiness slide down his cheek. His broken ribs hurt under the man's strong arms, but he wouldn't have asked for anything less.

They broke apart after a moment, Ghost sniffing. How was it, his friend, was alive? He was up; he was speaking, when minutes ago he had been falling away through eager, outstretched fingertips. Ghost was confused. His neck hurt. What was happening to him? His strength was fading like a waning moon, his will to live still only a sliver of light. He had to hold on now, for Roach… But how could he do that if he had to be Ghost for forgiveness? Ghost knew that the real Ghost had slipped away a long time ago; swept away in the undertow of feelings he was consumed with. Now, he was stripped back to nothing more that Simon Riley, a man without a strong path in life. When he was Ghost, he was strong, brave, feared yet respected. Now he was dwindling to nothing more than a man on the street corner, his life draining with each drop from the bottle into his mouth. He took into account the look of pain on Roach's face. He had to try, and he could try, for him. Anything for forgiveness. Anything to get Ghost back.

Roach watched as Ghost sat back in the chair, shaky and weary. Roach queried him gently. "When was the last time you slept?" The dreamy look in Ghost's eyes shifted a bit, tiredness creeping in. The deep, still confused sounding voice came to him. "I don't know. I remember, it was cold when I did though. Maybe wind. I don't know…" Roach felt his heart throe. Ghost had lost all sense of anything. His memory, his perspective, and his judgment. Suddenly, a thought hit Roach. What if it nearly losing him made Ghost lose all of those-And his identity. The things that made him Ghost. Roach prodded again in a gentle voice. "When did you eat last? What did you drink last?" The distant look resumed. "I think I ate, maybe a week ago? Doc said I had to eat… Doctors' orders. I drank some water earlier. It was pretty warm. I was here, with you. I was talking about my last mission. I nearly messed up, nearly got Toad killed. I felt really bad about it. He said it was fine." Roach chewed on his lower lip. He hadn't noticed it before, but in the clothes that were usually tight against the barrel chest and strong stomach now hung loosely. Roach wanted to wince. He didn't think that things would have ever gotten to be this bad. "Hey, Ghost?" Roach whispered, seeing Ghost slip away into the land of his own thoughts. The man looked back at him, but in his eyes, he was not truly there. "Why don't we get something to eat? Doc can get me a wheelchair, and we can go to the mess hall. I bet you we can get some chili, your favorite. They for sure will be making some if we ask. How about that?" Ghost blinked once, almost as if he did not understand. It took a moment for him to have any reaction. "Sure. When?" Roach smiled. "Now."

It is hard to imagine how hard it is to be away from the world for a month then return to things as askew as they were. Ozone, gone. Ghost, off the deep end. Alison, much better, but impacted by his absence as well. All the other men; drinking, playing cards, and sleeping. MacTavish it seemed even was neglecting to care for anything. Roach was surprised, more appalled as he was wheeled by Ghost more towards the mess hall. He was nothing more than the FNG, the little guy no one wanted around. In some way, he was the glue holding everything together. It was hard to believe, but true. His stomach growled dejectedly. "Hey, Ghost, Doc said I shouldn't eat much. I'm starving though. How about we ask for that chili? They can have it ready in an hour or so." Only silence met his ears. He just hoped that Ghost had nodded. He wished deep within that he could put Ghost back together before it was too late. If it already wasn't too late.

Roach saw the inside of the mess hall. One thing was the same, anyway. It still smelled of food, some burnt toast, and beer. Roach inhaled deeply through his nose. This was what he had been missing. His stomach turned again, threatening to eat itself. He turned his head back around to look at Ghost. "So, where do you want to sit? Your spot or mine?" The words were soft and gentle, like the one way would to speak to a child. Ghost let out a short breath. "Mine?" Roach tried to sound cheerful. "That's cool. I haven't sat there more than once." They began to go for one of the tables, the incorrect one, when Roach felt them stop. "What is it?" He asked. Ghost voice was small and confused. "I don't remember where. I can't remember." Roach fought the urge to let out a surprised sound. Instead, he used his voice to gently guide Ghost in the right direction.

They got to the table, and Ghost quietly made room for Roach by moving a few chairs. "Hey, go ask them to get us some chili, okay?" Ghost nodded, and Roach watched as he walked away. Roach took a deep breath. Things were not going too well so far. Ghost, he might not even be there anymore. Somewhere, lost deep inside. Roach suddenly felt a desperate churning of emotions. He had to get Ghost out. Somewhere, he had to bring out the man he knew was there. He had to find him again. A sharp sound made him turn his head to the rec room doors. Chemo stumbled out, turning and dipping, stumbling. In one hand he gripped a liquor bottle. He collapsed towards a table, sloppily grabbing and edge and hauling himself to a chair. Chemo put his head between his legs, panting. Roach could practically feel his eyes growing wider and wider. He had seen Chemo just minutes earlier, talking normal with all of the other guys. Now, he was stumbling around like a man who had never seen anything but a liquor bottle tilted to the sky through crossed eyes. Roach turned his head away, disgusted, and saw Ghost walking in an almost dreamlike state towards him. Roach plastered a friendly look on his face, ignoring the noises that Chemo was making. "So, are they going to make it?" Ghost nodded, a faint smile touching his lips. Roach felt a sigh of relief come to him. Emotion. Happiness isn't normal Ghost, but it was enough to get him some reaction other than the dreamlike trance he had been seen in. "Yeah, they say they are going to have it in an hour. What will we do while we wait?" Roach grinned. "How about we talk about Ghost?" Ghost sat down in the chair next to him. "Ghost?" "Yes, you. We are going to find him again. We will find out who he is." Ghost sighed. Roach knew that Ghost never sighed. The man replied in a broken voice. "Well, I don't know who he is. You will need to help me." Roach shrugged. "No problem. We can start with the guys. When was the last time they trained?" The blank look resumed. "Training?" Roach wanted to growl his growing frustration. How could things have gotten this bad? "Training. The Pit? Torture to death with exercise? When did you last do that?" Ghost looked to the ceiling, as if he was seeing something that no one else could. "I don't know… Maybe the day after you…" Ghost faded off there. Roach took a deep breath, knowing that this would take a lot of work. A lot. "Well, at least we have a place to start. We always need a place to start. "


	26. While I Was Away

**Yeah, so, sorry my update hasn't been in forever! This chapter is another short one, mostly because I have been itching with another idea. I know on my profile it says that my policy is one story at a time, but when you feel this strong about something, you have to get the idea's down on paper (Microsoft word) before it fizzles away. Well, that wont matter for another few days until this one is done and I can get the first chapter of that one onto fanfiction. This chapter is a little more focused on Alison towards the end, and Ghost to the beginning. I hope you like it. It was a rush job, too. Maybe a little under half an hour? Yeah, I know : )**

Roach and Ghost found themselves at the edge of the pit. Ghost still had the distant, dreamy look in his eyes, but it seemed that the familiar surroundings had woken him up a bit. Roach looked expectantly at him. "So? What are you going to do now?" Roach watched Ghost handle the gun in his hands. His actions were smooth, gentle, and careful, unlike the rest of his confused ones. The thin voice finally came from Ghost's mouth. "I am going to start?" Roach nodded, feeling like a teacher teaching a pupil. "That's right. When you hear a big horn, you are going to go in, and complete the course. I will be waiting at the end. You will know that I am at the end, waiting for you. Just get through it, okay?" The sound that Ghost made kind of sounded like the kind of sound a child would make, an affirmative one. It would have to do for now. Roach started to wheel himself away to where he knew that exit platform waited. He got there just in time to hear the shallow blast of the horn.

Ghost heard the sound ring out, and like his body was on autopilot, he dove into the familiar surroundings. The targets came up, and he held the weapon in his hands. He knew Roach was at the end, waiting. He knew that he was going to get to see that he was okay at the end. He just had to get through this. Ghost felt the weapon in his hands, carefully tightening his finger around his trigger and hearing the bullets spray from it as a target popped up right in front of his face. He suddenly felt his hand snap back to a spot on his partial uniform and pull out a knife. He sunk it into a target to his left as he spat bullets at another on his right. It was all so foreign, yet so natural. He scrambled up a ladder, and heard a sound that signified the end. Roach was there, right in front of him, smiling. It was a look of pride and happiness on his face. Ghost couldn't help but feel warmth inside of him. Something about that run he just took seemed so natural. He felt something stir inside of him. It was the ghost of the man he really was waking somewhere deep inside of him. He did know it, but Roach was there to draw it out.

Roach would have patted Ghost on the back if they were about the same level. Now, all Roach could do was smile. "That was great. Thirty three seconds. Great for the first time in a long time." The happiness in him only increased as Ghost asked tentatively "Can I try again?" Roach nodded, but then shook his head after a moment. "No, Ghost, you don't ask me that. You are my superior, remember that. You decide what you can and can't do. You tell me what to do. Okay?" Ghost nodded, though Roach could detect hesitance. He smiled and waved his hand towards the start. Ghost went back to the start, and the horn sounded again. It was a sigh of relief as Ghost dove in again, seeming to be on light feet, springing like a deer through the underbrush. It was like he belonged. –NO- Roach thought to himself. It was no like he belonged there. He did belong there. Suddenly, there Ghost was, a smile on his scarred face, right in front of him. Roach quickly checked the time. "Twenty eight, Ghost. Good job. What do you want to do now?" Not to his surprise, Ghost only pointed to the start again. Roach waved him on. His plan was working. Already, on the first day, Ghost was coming back.

It was about twenty runs later that Ghost finally showed some signs of tiredness. Roach had sat patiently the whole time, dutifully reading off the times as they worked their way down to about twenty seconds. Ghost set the gun down with careful hands, a bolt of steel flashing in his gaze as Roach called to him. Roach saw it in the split second it was there. A chip in the shell that Ghost had formed around himself. "Hey, Ghost, want to go play some poker? I am sure that I can get a few of the other guys to play." Ghost made a hemming sound. "Sure. If you want to." Roach nodded, not wanting to cause an argument or anything. They walked, well, Roach got pushed, to the rec room. Ghost opened the doors, and Roach was hit by the smell of smoke, stale alcohol, and vomit. It was repulsive, but Ghost just continued in. Roach surveyed quickly with his eyes. He would have said that he would be up to his knees in bottles, but he didn't want to make an understatement. It was like a rats nest. What looked like over a hundred bottles were scattered and piled in heaps. The couches were moved, toppled, or even worse stained than they had been before. The only empty spot was the couch in front of the faintly glowing television. Roach had Ghost clear him a path there, and he saw Alison sitting there, alone. Roach didn't pay attention to any of the other guys in the room, all of whom were drinking or smoking, crashed on couches. He went straight to Alison. "Hey!" He called out. She turned around, and a smile immediately filled her face. She dropped the controller and stood up. "Hey, Roach! Hey, Ghost!" Roach smiled. "Hey, how are you?" She shrugged, picking her way over to him. "Pretty good. I prestiged twice so far. I think I am getting better. My quick scope used to suck, but now it's really good!" Roach grinned. "That's good. So, do you mind if I join you? Maybe Ghost too?" Her mouth opened, but to Roach's surprise, Ghost's voice cut in. "I thought you said we were going to play poker." Roach sighed, but inwardly, he was glad. He heard the sharp bite in the end, even though it was more of a childish whine. Roach was about to apologize to Alison, when she cut in before him. "That's cool with me. How about I join you guys?" Roach raised an eyebrow. "You? Play poker?" The guys must have been listening, because from far in the corner of the room, Rook yelled out. "Hey, mate, she's pretty good! While you were out, we taught her to play! I'd like to see you catch her bluff!" This caused small whistles of drunken approval to come from the others in the room. He looked back at Alison with a partially stunned, partially sour face. "Really?" A sly look came across her face. "I guess the only way you will find out is to play." Roach gave in, more cheers coming from the room.

An hour later, Roach slammed his cards down on the table. Well, as well as he could with his bandaged arm. Ghost let out a haughty laugh with the rest of the men. "I told you she is a good one, didn't I?" Rook called out again. Alison sat with a smile on her face. She really was good, but she seemed out of place on the crooked table with bent cards, suffocating in liquor bottles. Her plain, gentle face was the only thing that seemed clean about this place anymore. Roach saw her gently push away a beer bottle that went toppling her way. Truthfully, he wouldn't have been surprised if she was drinking by now. Or smoking, at least. She was with this guy's 24/7 the past month. Maybe she hadn't become an addict like the rest of him, but she must have tried at one point or another. Roach leaned back. "Well, I think that I am getting ready for dinner. I had almost no lunch." The rest of the men let out drunken laughs. Archer stood, seeming to be one of the few sober ones. Well, at least, more so than the rest of them. "Hey, Roach, how are ya buddy?" Roach smiled. "I'm good. It's all good." They all sat back down, and played another hand. Well, and one after that. They played through the night, and to Roach's joy, he saw a bit of a spark return to Ghost's attitude. He could fix this. Roach truly believed he could.


	27. Wake Up Already!

**Who was naughty and said they would update every few days? *Blush* that would be me. Have you ever had one of those killer weeks with every waking hour booked, but when you finally have an hour or two free up, you find yourself with an incurable dose of writers block? Mhmm. This is one of those days. (Weeks.) So, here it is. It is short, yes, and boring, yes. This is one of those chapters. I am upset I could not produce better. Sigh. Trying some tea to cure writers block. Just took a warm shower. Listening to favorite song. All cures for writers block. Hope to be sending more good stuff your way soon :)**

Roach slept in the hospital again, though to his fond annoyance, he had some roommates. Ghost had decided that it would be best to sleep on the floor, while the small chair in the corner had Alison lying on it, head on her shoulder, eyes closed. Roach himself wasn't asleep yet, but Ghost was. He was curled on the floor, almost in a ball, his hands close to his chest. Roach sighed and looked up at the ceiling. Ghost was sleeping like a baby, literally. Roach didn't know how he was going to get him back on his feet. Roach was determined to, though. He had seen Ghost return during the game of poker, for brief flashes. If it had taken him one month to wear away, but this quick to recover as much already, Roach was hoping that it would take about a week. Well, a week until he was stable enough to last on his own for a little while. Roach let his head rest back on the pillow. He didn't know what he was feeling much more at this point. Lately, even as he was taking it for Ghost a month ago, he was taking it for others. He was taking others feelings and faults on his shoulders and making sure they stood without the weight. He would take it physically and sometimes mentally for those that he knew. Ghost, apologizing was hard, but he practically had to hold him up as he went through his near denial of losing his identity of Ghost. Alison, she was grieving and confused. Roach, he had taken it upon himself to help her, be a fatherly figure, and try to take her pain away. It had worked, but he had found himself a little more weighed down. Now, even as he was the one who should be recovering both mentally and physically, he was the one having to take it for the others. In fact, he was angry when he thought about that. MacTavish, the man who was supposed to be running the god damn place wasn't even twitching a finger. The other men, they were all wasting away in their own way, drowning in the land of liquor and ashes. Roach wanted to do something, like punch a wall, slam a door, or just take a gun and shoot the hell out of a target. Unfortunately, he was confiscated to this little god forsaken place unless someone, like Ghost, would help him up into the wheelchair, and then take him wherever he needed to go. That wasn't going to happen. Roach put his head as far back into the pillow as it would go, then wiled himself to sleep.

The only reason Roach woke at all the following morning was because someone didn't close the blinds on the window completely. A band of sunlight reached through the cracks, touching his eyelids. He peeked his eyes open and the sun streamed through, making his world blind for a moment. He groaned, shutting his eyes again. He was so tired… Until the thought hit him that it was light out. Roach threw his eyelids open, letting the sun flash into his line of sight once more. The sun illuminated the small pieces of dust floating in the room, and when his vision truly cleared, Roach looked down at Ghost. The man was still asleep on the floor, curled tight around himself. Alison was still in the chair, head leaning on one shoulder in the bliss of sleep. Roach tried to pull himself to a sitting position, but found it difficult with the bulky casts on both arms. Though he was in pain, Roach was a soldier of the 141. He gritted his teeth and pulled his tired and wounded body up until he was sitting. When the epic challenge was over, Roach took a breath. He cleared his parched mouth, chewing on his tongue once. In a loud enough voice to wake Ghost, he called out "Hey, Ghost! Wake up!" Roach waited for Ghost to spring to his feet like he did whenever he heard a sound, like he usually did, but the man remained on the floor, curled up like a baby. Roach sniffed slightly. He took a deep breath in, and screamed out almost as loud as he could (which was very loud) "Ghost! Wake up!" Suddenly, the immobile figure on the floor jumped to life and the girl in the chair sat up straight as a board. Roach felt bad for a moment in waking Alison up, but with Ghost, he felt little empathy. The man was up, on his feet, eyes wide until he spotted Roach and put it together that it was him that woke him up. Alison stared at him with wide eyes. Roach blinked once in apology before turning to Ghost. He used an accusatory voice. "Ghost, what time is it?" The man loosened up from his rigid pose and shrugged. "I dunno." Roach glared. Ghost let his chin drop to his chest, his voice sounding like that of a pouty child who knows he's been caught. "Probably about ten o clock." Roach groaned. "And, why exactly, are we up at ten in the morning?" "Because… We're tired?" Roach shook his head. "Wrong. It's because you're lazy. You're all slacking. I want you to get me a meeting with MacTavish. Now. As in, take me there now."

Roach didn't have time to fuck around. He had to get this fixed, and fast. It really was becoming worse than he thought. He had Ghost call of Doc, who gave him the once over, and told him he was fine to go out to see MacTavish as long as he stayed in the wheelchair. Ghost helped him in with a blank and tired face, and he let Alison follow them along. Roach made sure they passed the barracks so Alison could get some more sleep. He bid her farewell for then, and went to MacTavish's office. He rapped on the door twice with his knuckles as best he could. It took a moment before the voice answered him with a somewhat tired "Come in." Ghost opened the door, and Roach got pushed in. The sight that met Roach's eyes was a surprise, yet no surprise. Roach didn't think that much could surprise him after what he had been through lately.

The office wasn't littered with as many bottles as the rec room, but it reeked of smoke and tobacco. MacTavish was sitting in his chair behind a desk piled shoulder high with piles of papers and empty packages of lord knows what. Roach frowned, his mouth curving down to match MacTavish's visage. The man looked up at him with empty eyes. "What is it?" Roach cleared his throat. "May I speak to you alone, sir?" Roach had to nearly correct himself at the end. MacTavish, no matter what state he was in, was his superior. The older man waved his hand at Ghost. Ghost walked out of the office, closing the door, leaving Roach and MacTavish alone. Once the door shut with a click, Roach cleared his throat again. MacTavish did the same. "What's wrong Roach?" Roach swallowed. "Um, sir, I think while I was out, things were a bit, lax." MacTavish scoffed. "What does that mean?" "It means, sir that I think the men haven't done anything. Ghost did nothing, for sure. I know I had a warm welcome back to this world, but it seems like everyone has fallen into the habit of drinking the night away. Sir, I think that things need to get better." MacTavish rolled his eyes. "Kid, you don't think I know that?" These words were said just as MacTavish took a swig from the bottle of hard liquor on his desk.


	28. MacTavish and Roach

**Shortest. Chapter. Ever. Worst case of writers block. Ever. I am so sorry! I promise better soon!**

Roach let his eyes open wide. The words were not the drifting tone he had heard moments earlier. These were solid. This was the captain he knew. "Sir?" MacTavish rolled his eyes again and pulled a cigar from his desk drawer. "I said, you don't think I know that? All they are doing is acting like a bunch of bums. We have barely made any of our missions successful lately." Roach cleared his throat. MacTavish knew? He realized it? What was he doing about it? "Um, sir, what are you going to do about it?" MacTavish lit the cigar and put it in his mouth, taking a breath in. Roach watched as a few moments later he let a big breath out, a cloud of smoke filling the room. "You know that things have been bad, right?" Roach felt a puzzled look cross his face. "Yes, sir." MacTavish breathed in and out again. "Well, Ghost is the one who has fallen apart to tatters. I assume you know that also." Roach only nodded. "Well, then, I guess I could tell it to you straight. He collapsed like a burning building. Quick, and hard to watch. He was my right hand man, and still is. Losing him in this way of mental state was like having a carpet ripped out from under my feet. Now, lad, I hope you understand what I am going to say next is not to be repeated." Roach nodded, his voice firm. "Yes sir." MacTavish cleared his throat, and as he took a breath before speaking Roach felt like he had ants crawling over his body in fearful anticipation. "I am the captain of this task force. Task Force 141, the damn best soldiers out there. Screw what anyone else says. You guys are the best of the best. I would never doubt you, or any of the others. I need to tell you two things. The first is, even though I am captain, and Shepherd is general, Ghost is the rock here. He is the base, the solid floor under all of our feet. He is the man who runs the drills, can be a pain in your ass, but he is full of courage, and you know he has your back. That is who he is. When his mask came off, everyone thought he was different. Dynamics changed a bit, and some turned on him a bit, but by acting a little worse than normal he proved we still had a solid surface to stand on. We were like a recovering city with him as our base. But when he lost you though, it was yanked away. Things spiraled into despair. I tried after a few days to get them back up, all of them, but with Ghost gone, everyone was gone in a way. That is why things are so awful. The second is, we need you. If Ghost is the rock, then you are the glue that holds us together. Ghost gone, you gone, we are nothing more than a mass of debris. Now, I couldn't do anything, because how can you build something if you have no base or no glue?"

Roach felt his face wrinkle, in frustration and in realization of what the captain had said. "So, sir, you are saying you couldn't do anything? Its not that you didn't want to?" This got him a somewhat frustrated look from the captain. "Lad, you don't think that I hate this? You are part of my family, all of you, no matter how much you can annoy me. And I would do anything I could to get them back together. I hate seeing them like this. God dammit, I hate seeing me like this!" Roach flinched as MacTavish grabbed the empty bottle on his desk and flung it against a wall. "See, that is what I am fucking talking about!" MacTavish yelled. "Ghost has changed us all! We need him back right away!" MacTavish drew in a deep breath of air as Roach looked on with wide eyes. "can you do that Roach? Please tell me you can."

Roach swallowed. He felt as if a giant spotlight was looking at him, all the eyes in a crowded theatre looking at him. "Sir, I think I can. I think I can." Roach tried to shake away the tremor he heard in his own voice. Something in him was urging him forward, telling him that his thoughts were true, and Ghost could be saved. Another part of him was telling him Ghost was too far gone, irreparable. Roach shook the thoughts away. MacTavish may have seen the look in Roach's face, he may not have. But Roach new just as well as he did that Roach was the last hope for the whole task force. Roach thought of a quote he heard somewhere, and whispered it under his breath. "Don't take the weight off my shoulders, just make my shoulders broader." MacTavish glanced at him. "What was that?" Roach cleared his throat. "Nothing sir. I was just thinking about what to do." MacTavish wrinkled his nose. "Well, you better decide fast." Roach nodded respectfully, and opened his mouth to call loudly for Ghost who must be outside a bit. Just as he was about to call out, he paused. "Um, sir, one last thing?" MacTavish nodded. "Go on." "Well, sir, I was wondering if I may confiscate any alcohol I find?" MacTavish nodded. "Go crazy. Let them all go cold turkey for a bit. It will help." Roach smiled, and called for his friend to come and get him.


	29. Remembering

**Short chapter, late update! Sorry! But this time I have plenty of excuses! (Good ones too!) First of all, this has just been a busy week. Lots of time at the doctor (Due both to injuries and sickness) which has left me with little time. Along with the fact that I was kind of sick, have lots of activities, etc. This was supposed to be up on Wednesday, but my computer also has a virus. It shut itself down, and I lost all of this, and had to rewrite it. I was very upset. Well, I hope that you aren't too upset at me for not updating, but this is a pretty good one, I think!**

Ghost came and got Roach right away. Roach peered at the man's face, but it was still distant and dreamy. He showed no signs that he had heard anything, which was good, but with a face that expressionless, Roach was unsure of what to think. Roach sniffed slightly, then spoke. "Why don't we take the guys down to the Pit for a training session. You know, warm them up a bit? Maybe yell at them for a little. That sounds like it would be cool." He turned to see that Ghost was actually listening, a huge improvement already. Ghost shrugged, his voice weak when he spoke. "I don't know." Roach used a gentle, teasing voice. "But come on! You must have missed doing that for the past month. They always get so scared when you start to yell. Come on." To his dismay, Ghost hung his head. "Why would I yell?" Roach shook his head. "Well, because you want to. But we can get there. How about we just get them together and see if they can run it once?" He turned back in despair, hoping to see some spark of relief or something other than a blank look in the ice blue eyes of Ghost. He was not rewarded. Roach switched his tone to the motherly one he had a knack for producing in times of need. "Come on. You know you need to. You have all been sitting around. Would it make you feel better if I help you?" Ghost nodded, and Roach smiled encouragingly. "Let's start by rounding up the guys. I will bet that they are all in the rec room." Ghost nodded again, one of his fingers twitching slightly. Roach suppressed a sigh. This was going to be difficult, but they were getting there.

Roach and Ghost entered the rec room, Ghost entering first. They only got a few glances, one from Archer, the other from Alison. Roach smiled. Archer looked pretty sober, but then again, the stoic man usually was. Alison was once again camped in front of the faintly glowing screen. Roach looked at ghost expectantly. Ghost, to Roach's frustration, only noticed he was being looked at a few moments later. Roach gently prodded him, hoping that he would get the hint. "Come on Ghost. You know what to do." Ghost gave him a confused look with glassy eyes. Roach wanted to run a hand through his hair in frustration, but they were still restrained by the casts. He wanted to glare at Ghost, but he knew that using anger would not help in this man's case. Instead, he pulled out the gentle voice again. "Come on Ghost. You know you can remember. Can you try that for me?" A blink was the only sign of recognition he got. Roach took a deep breath of air. "You know you can. Come on. You have to remember. We are going to train at the pit, and need to gather these men. You know how to call them. Get them up." Ghost blinked again, his voice a weak tremble when it came out. "What if I get it wrong?" Roach smiled. Ghost actually responded to him, very coherently. Roach was no doctor, but he knew a sign of improvement when he saw one. "If you get it wrong, nothing will happen. I will help you out. Now, I'll start you off. You want to go to a training session, and you just burst through the doors. They are all here, barely paying any attention. You yell the same thing to get them down there. Now, go ahead." Roach opened his eyes, noticing Ghost's face turn into a frown. Well, not a true frown. More of an angry, determined look. Roach felt pure relief bubble into his body, from his head to his toes. This was a look that had often come across Ghost's face when it was uncovered, but it also had a feeling to it. The air around them got a certain tension, the kind that Roach had felt radiating from Ghost, the old Ghost. The icy blue eyes had a dash of flint to their gaze. Ghost opened his mouth, and Roach heard some of the sweetest sounds of his life. "Come on you lazy pussies! Get your ass's down to the pit right now, or I swear to god I will work you so hard you will wish you were dead!" The familiar call ended, not a single word having wavered. A look of determination and relief crossed Ghost's face, his eyes afire with something untold, something that not even Roach could detect. Most of the eyes in the rec room snapped to Ghost, all other than Meat, who was passed out on the couch. Archer met Roach's eyes, and Roach saw a faint smile trace the snipers lips. It was a clear sign of approval.

Ghost felt an odd chill sweep through his body. He had remembered. The words had started out odd and flavorless on his tongue, but as he continued to try and remember, they felt natural as breathing. They flowed out of his mind and mouth until he could hear them. Ghost thought for a second his voice almost seemed alien to himself. It was no longer weak and trembling, but strong, firm, and deep. He felt a fire start up deep in his body and sweep through him, the fire of victory, of courage, of a battle fought and won. He had remembered. He had made himself proud.

Roach was filled with happiness and joy that Ghost had remembered. The men had answered. He turned up to Ghost. "Well, come on, you called them. Lets carry out your threat. Get down to the pit, and make them run a few courses. Nothing too hard. Just enough to wake them up." Ghost nodded with a surprising ferocity and took Roach's wheelchair by the handles. They turned out of the rec room and Roach didn't need to help Ghost with one footfall as they worked their way to the pit.

**So, there you go! Short but sweet! Expect more later tonight or early tomorrow! At my first authors note, I also failed to mention headache enducing writers block. Anyways, its gone now, I am feeling better, and am free the rest of the weekend! Hope this made you all happy : )**


	30. Shoot

**This is a pretty long chapter-Hence the lack of early update. Thank you for reading, hope this suits your needs for more Roach and Alison buddyship. **

They arrived there slightly before the other men, all of whom were trailing by a bit, respectfully. Roach could tell by how Ghost held himself that each footfall was steady and sure, and it showed that he was confident there was solid ground under his feet. With dismay, Roach realized that the solid ground was what he needed. He had been waving like a willow in a gale the past month. He needed certainty. They arrived at the edge of the pit, and the men fell into line immediately. Roach smiled. He was next to Ghost, who was in his usual spot in front of the team. They looked shaggy, craggy, bent, and wispy. Roach looked up at Ghost, who still had the certain look on his face. A glint of confusion glinted in his eyes for a fraction of a second. Roach knew he had to keep Ghost going. "Come on. You can remember." He spoke in a soft voice. Ghost looked at him, and the confusion disappeared. Roach took a breath in sync with Ghost, and the man began to speak in a loud voice, addressing the men. "Now, I know you have all been on a long vacation. That was my fault. You can't slack any longer. I want you each to have three good runs through, all fewer than thirty seconds. Get your weapons, and get moving!" Roach winced when Ghost's voice cracked near the end. For a moment he feared he would have to help his friend recover, but obviously Ghost could handle it. He just shook right through it and pointed the line of soldiers to the weapons. A few hesitated for a moment, but seeing the look on his face, they started to move. Roach smiled a small grin. When the others were out of earshot, he spoke encouragingly to Ghost. "They listened." Ghost shot him a look, pure Ghost. "Why wouldn't they?" Roach opened his eyes wide, in surprise and joy. The last time he had heard something that confident exit his mouth, it had been… Forever ago. Roach shook his head with a smile. "I never doubted it." Well, Roach didn't know that would set Ghost off.

The blank look overcame Ghost again, and Roach felt his eyebrows shoot to the sky. "What is it?" He asked in an urgent tone, looked at Ghost with wide eyes. Ghost frowned, a sad look crossing his face, the tremor returning to his voice. "That's the thing though… I doubted it. I'm not sure if I can do this…" As he trailed off, Roach shook his head. "No. You can. You are doing great. Just keep trying, and you will find it comes really easy. You are doing so great, just keep on going." Ghost gave a small nod, biting his lower lip in indecision. Roach would have patted his back, but once again, the casts were restraining. Damn He thought to himself. I'm really going to have to see about trading these in for a wrap or something… And something so I don't have to fucking sit around! He shook the straying thoughts from his head, and watched Ghost yell at Archer to start the course. Roach watched intently, seeing Ghost yell at most, but not all, mistakes that the man made. The words didn't include as many curses as the usually did, and occasionally they shook, but Ghost stood solid and confident. Roach was admiring his recovering idol when suddenly there was someone beside him. This someone happened to be pretty short with short brown hair. He smiled as she looked at him. "Hey." He said simply. She nodded. "Yeah. Hey." He followed her gaze, and it was looking at Ghost. He shrugged. "So, what's up?" She also shrugged in response. "Nothing much. I've done nothing other than play call of duty and skyrim for the past month. It's been pretty boring. " Roach felt guilt seep into him. He had not only neglected Ghost the past month, but Alison too. And now, he was focusing mostly on Ghost, not her at all. He spoke to her, trying to make his tone seem guilty and regretful. "Hey, I know I have been spending a lot of time with Ghost. I promise that later I will spend some with you. Like, not playing video games. Something that seems cool. You name it, we can do it." He hoped that she would come up with something creative-something that he could do. He wanted to make her happy, make sure he maintained the bond of trust he had started with her. He waited patiently as she rubbed her hands together thoughtfully, then she looked up at him with wide eyes. "You said, like anything?" Roach nodded without a moment of hesitation. "If I can do it, and if it's within reason." She smiled suddenly, like a wilted flower that had just been given rain. "Then, it would be okay if…" She trailed off, a bit of uncertainty twitching in her face. Roach smiled as wide as he could. "Come on. I told you anything. I wasn't lying." The look of happiness came over her again. "Then, it would be okay if you taught me how to shoot?" Roach blinked, but didn't stop smiling. The question was unexpected, very much so, but Roach was relieved in a way. It was definitely something he could do, definitely something he could teach, and very much so relate too. When he thought about it, it was probably one of the better things she could have asked. He nodded. "Definitely. How about as soon as Ghost and them are done? Then we can head over to the shooting range and I can teach you how to shoot a rifle?" She nodded with enthusiasm. Roach smiled, as he was very much looking forward to the time he would have with her later in the shooting range.

The rest of the training in the pit finished quickly, many of the men slow and weak from the month long break they had. Roach was relieved to see Ghost keeping them in check for much of the time. Roach wished thoroughly that he could join them himself, but he knew that wouldn't be happening for a while. When Ghost dismissed the men, Roach wheeled himself over the dust and dirt to him. Ghost had a thoughtful look absorbing his face. Roach gently nudged him with an elbow and smiled. "Wow, that was awesome. Can I meet up with you later? I promised Alison I would spend some time with her." Ghost nodded, and Roach waved farewell to him. He saw Ghost, out of the corner of his eye, turn back to the barracks. Roach knew that he would be fine for a while on his own, or at least, hoped he would. He went over to the shooting range, to find Alison siting there engaged in conversation with Archer. Roach sighed in relief that it was Archer. He knew that the older sniper liked Alison and she liked him, and he might be able to help with the things that he couldn't in a wheelchair, such as stance. He called out to them "Hey!" They turned to look at them, Alison with a smile on her face, Archer looking happy also. He got over to them in a few seconds. "Hey Roach" Archer said. "So, Alison here says you're going to teach her how to shoot a rifle." Roach nodded his confirmation, looking into the anticipating face of Alison. Archer laughed. "Sounds good, but how, may I ask, could you show her anything how you are right now?" Roach shrugged sheepishly. "That's where I was hoping you could help me a bit. Could you stick around a bit?" Archer grinned, flashing white teeth. "No problem." Roach smiled again. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get started?"

And get started they did. Archer and Roach both went through a lengthy discussion with her on gun safety and treatment, which was to be expected, and to Roach's relief, Alison listened intently. He knew many kids would have just gone to daydreaming or something, but she listened to every word and seemed to document it in a file somewhere in her mind. When it did come time to pick up a gun though, she was extremely cautious, though it was not loaded or without the safety. Roach had a habit of noticing every detail, and he noticed very quickly how even though she had never held a gun before, her hands seemed to handle it like they had held one before. Roach offered her gentle encouragement and Archer proceeded to give her an example. Archer was one of the best shooters in the whole task force, taking down targets with ease. Alison continued to watch, then Roach gave her a lesson on how to load and unload. Roach praised her as she caught onto that immediately. "Great job" he commented. She smiled, a knowing kind of smile. Archer then proceeded to show her a good stance, then helped her adjust hers. After nearly five minutes of instruction on standing and holding the weapon right, it was time for the deciding moment. Alison looked into the sights, and Roach held a breath as she took a deep one herself. Then, her finger squeezed the trigger. Roach knew it would have been too perfect if perfect aim accompanied her natural stance and handling of the gun. The bullet barely nicked the side of the metal. He waited for some sign of anger cross her face, but instead, she took a deep breath, and shot again. This time, the bullet edged a bit closer to the middle. This process repeated over and over again, between hints and tips from Archer. Eventually, after nearly twenty minutes, she was able to hit the center of the target without fail. Roach smiled when she finally set the gun down with a breath. Roach hadn't seen her face much, but when he did, it had a large smile on it. He smiled himself. "Great job! Do you want to try out any other kinds of rifles?" She had been using their smallest, the one with the least recoil. She seemed like she could handle something larger, but she shook her head. "No thanks. That was great. You guys taught me a lot! That was great!" Roach nodded. "Glad you liked it. We can try again later, or tomorrow, or whenever you ask. You have it down now. We can try a few more things if you would like." She nodded enthusiastically. "Sounds great." Archer smiled, and Alison thanked him thoroughly before he nodded and walked off. Roach was glad, because it was obvious Alison once again was sticking to him like glue. Not that he minded, of course.

**Probably going to update once more tonight, though with nothing this long :-( Hope you all enjoy :-)**


	31. Healing A Wound

**Woo Hoo! Two updates in one day! I pat myself on the back! Hope you enjoy it! (Oh, and includes the answer to Roach's question to Alison a few chapters earlier!)**

Ghost sat on his bunk once more, though not in depression, but thought. Though the rush and warm fire in his body he had felt earlier faded, he was left with a vague realization. That feeling he got, that was who Ghost really was. Ghost knew he would need to talk to Roach though. He had not confided in him the nightmares that he had been having, or how he doubted that the men would be able to accept him any longer. He had the feeling that he needed to talk, needed to tell Roach his worries and fears. Ghost sat up, and swung his feet over the edge of the bunk. Out of the corner of his eye he saw two pieces of black cloth beneath his pillow. He hadn't seen them for a while. Ghost reached out a tentative hand, as if he was going to pick them up, but drew back. He didn't want to bring all of that back to the surface. He didn't want to remind himself how naked he felt each and every day without it, and how all of the men looked at him still, tracing his scars with their eyes. Ghost knew he had tried to push himself forward and ignore it, even in his mentally unstable state, but it wasn't working. He knew that he didn't have the two pieces of fabric to protect him any longer, or the red tinted glasses to shade his ice blue eyes. He was dwelling miserably on these thoughts when the door cracked open. He looked up to see Roach entering, being pushed by Alison. Ghost barely blinked in acknowledgement that they had entered. Alison nodded and walked out, closing the door behind them. Ghost didn't know where she was going, but he was here, alone, with Roach. He had the chance to talk, now.

Roach was a bit reluctant to let Alison alone, but she protested she had been for the last month and was fine. He relented and allowed her to walk down the hall and to the bathroom unaccompanied. The look on Ghost's face made him swirl into a whirlwind of thoughts the second that she left the room, though. He was about to ask the first question, when Ghost did that for him. "Can we talk?" he said, and Roach was stunned for a moment. Ghost had said that he never wanted to have a heart to heart talk again* , yet here he was, asking if they could. Roach, though, knew this was just what they needed. "Yeah, sure." Ghost seemed to take a deep breath, then ran a hand through his short, black hair. "Roach, I just… I need you to tell me what the Ghost you know is like." Roach took a deep breath, and wheeled himself over to the bottom bunk. Ghost hopped down from his bunk, and sat on the lower one, facing Roach. Roach took a deep breath again, feeling like a father telling a story to his son. "Well, let's see here. The Ghost that I knew was never afraid. He was always the first one to run into the fight, the first to jump at any sign of danger. He could handle any kind of gun like it was part of him, and he could make a grown man cry at the sight of him. He yelled, want afraid to use any kind of language that came to his head, and we still loved him. He was true to his name, always acting like a Ghost, secretive and always silent and unseen. He was amazing at poker, but didn't drink at all. He was sturdy, the foundation of this team." Roach relapsed into silence for a moment, when Ghost piped up again. "Did Ghost ever get mad?" Roach felt the side of his mouth tweak up into a grin. "Yeah." He breathed. "He could get mad. Mighty mad and mean. Everyone knew that if there was anyone to mess with, it wasn't Ghost." Now, Ghost had a grin twitch up on his face too. Roach was only able to get a few more words out before he heard the telltale footsteps coming down the hall, signaling Alison's return. "And I forgot to mention, that Ghost could overcome every and any obstacle sent his way. He was a superman who powered through it all." Alison walked in, finding the room with the two silent men. She had a smile on her face. "So, why don't we do something?" Roach returned her smile, and turned to look at Ghost. The man was already up though, and slipping out of the room, silent as a Ghost. Roach looked at Alison. "Well, just the two of us now." He nodded in agreement. Suddenly, he realized this would be the perfect time to tell her the plan.

Roach gestured for her to sit down on the bunk. She did so, and Roach launched into his plan right away. "So, you know how I asked you if you could sew a few days ago." She nodded, though Roach noticed it once again was with some uncertainty. "You asked why. Now I am telling you." He looked up to the top bunk, seeing a snip of black beneath the pillow. He had noticed it there a while ago, and had thought of the plan long before he had asked Alison that question. He smiled. "Grab what's under Ghost's pillow. You'll see why I asked." He waited patiently as she climbed up the bunk and reached her hand under the pillow, snatching the two pieces of black fabric with the distinguished white pattern. She climbed down and looked at them. Roach went on to tell her more of what he was planning. "So, you know what that is, right?" Her eyes widened, and she barely breathed her answer. "His mask." Roach knew what it was. He knew exactly how he could fix Ghost. The only way he could fix Ghost was to fix his mask. "That's right. I would love if you could fix it. Stitch it back together, so he could get his identity back. I don't care how long it takes, just, as soon as possible." He waited anxiously for her response, rubbing his palms together. She whistled under her breath and tucked a strand of brown hair behind her ear. "yeah, I think I could" She murmured. "Though, I would need a few things. Black and white thread, a needle, and some luck." Roach smiled, letting out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. "Well, then. I think I could get you those first three. As for luck, you have enough already. I am confident in you." She looked up at him with sparkling eyes. "Really?" Roach nodded, confirming. "Yes. Really." That made her smile as wide and as bright as the sun, her green eyes twinkling. "If you get those, then, I think I could finish tonight." Roach stopped any nervous movement he was making. "Well, lets get started." With that, they left the room to find what they needed.

***Chapter 11, last paragraph.**


	32. Stitching Together

**Wow! Third update today! And its of good length too… I make myself proud. :-) JK. I do this all for you guys, remember that! I might have another update tonight (I hope so) but don't bet on it. Next chapter is going to be fun though, I promise!**

It is pretty surprising how fast you can get supplies for sewing in a task force base. The needle was gotten from Doc, the black thread from MacTavish (Who had it lying in his desk. Roach could only wonder what for…) The white thread was gotten from Meat (Who claimed he used it as spider webbing for pranks. Guess who doubted that? Roach, that's who.) And somehow, Archer seemed to have a thimble that Alison could use (Roach could only dream) and Chemo scraped up some pins (Also claimed to be for pranking. Once again, Roach doubted that, seeing the small patches on Chemo's sheets, and that the man had a pin cushion for them. A pin cushion with daisies on it.) so, all in all, it was pretty successful. Unfortunately, now pretty much the whole task force was in on the secret. Not that it was necessarily a bad thing, but somehow, secrets seemed to have a hard time staying hidden in the camp. Roach and Alison retreated to MacTavish's office. Roach had gone to him first. The captain enthusiastically agreed, and offered them his office to fix it so they were pretty much guarenteed that Ghost wouldn't barge in. Roach and Alison slipped into the office, and Alison sat down immediately at the desk, while Roach spread the gathered supplies in front of her. He watched her take a breath, then pick up the two halves of the mask. Using the pins, she pinned it roughly together. She then threaded the needle with black thread, put the thimble on, and went to work. Roach could only vaguely guess at what she was doing, but her motions were steady, slow, and sure. Roach couldn't even see the tight stitching, but what he could see was the mask slowly coming together again, seamless. Roach stood watching, silently, as she worked. Her lips were a thin line, her eyes never straying from the steady in, out, of the needle. After about half an hour she was half done, and in an hour, making the last touches. When he had looked closer and asked what she was doing, she explained how she was switching the thread to white so she didn't have black stitching through the white of the pattern. Roach nodded, as it made sense, and watched her finish. The end time was an hour and fifteen minutes, and the clock read nine o clock. Alison set the needle down and pulled the thimble off, taking in a deep breath. Roach looked at her with wide eyes. "Is it done?" She nodded, placing her head on the desk. "That. Took. Forever." She breathed each word separately. Roach looked at her, then admired the mask in his hands. It was the same one that he knew and loved. He looked at her, his eyes filled with a thanks that could never be spoken. "Thank you so much. You know what- I want you to be the one to give it to him. I want you to give it to him tomorrow at lunch. Can you do that?" Alison lifted her head up. "Really? Me?" Roach nodded. "Yes, you. Yes, really. You've helped me so much by doing this. And besides, I think you've helped him on his road to recovery, a lot. So, you should give it to him."

She accepted the offer and they began to gather the supplies back together and return them subtly to each of their owners. The last stop was at the infirmary to return the needle to Doc. He took it, and Roach asked him about getting the casts off. Doc looked thoughtful. "I guess that I would have to look at them. It might take a bit." Roach looked to Alison. She waved a hand. "I'll be fine Roach. I'll just head over to your room and go to sleep. I'm tired." Roach nodded. He knew that she would be fine, and he knew that she had to be tired from today. He looked at her with a stern eye. "Okay, I'll be there in a little bit. Don't get into trouble." She rolled her eyes and walked out of the door without another word. Roach sighed. Teenagers were difficult.

Ghost had just been on a short walk around base, trying to clear his head, shuffle away all the thoughts that Roach had put into his head. He agreed with them, and tried to think about becoming himself again. When he found that clearly wasn't working, he took a deep breath, and cleared his mind. He wandered around the dimming base at a slow walk until he found himself back at the barracks. He walked into his room, only to find the lights off and the girl already asleep on the cot. He smiled in spite of himself at seeing her small, unmoving form. She looked so peaceful, and he didn't want to disturb her sleep. He slipped into his own bunk and closed his eyes falling into a deep sleep immediately. He would be sleeping for a while before the nightmares hit.

Roach was discussing the whole "Cast vs. bandaging" thing with Doc, and was trying to convince the man that casts were too restrictive. "But that's the point!" Doc retorted, pinching the bridge of his nose. Roach rolled his eyes. "Keeping me restricted is like caging a tiger! It just doesn't work out!" Doc slammed his hands down to his sides, and it seemed like he would have banged them down on a table it he could. "Well, if you want to go out and hurt them before they are healed, be my guest!" Roach scoffed in his own retort. "I won't be running the pit or anything. I don't mind the one on my leg. Just free my arms so I could use crutches or something. I'll be careful." Doc gave a scoff of his own in return, which kind of pissed Roach off a bit. "you, Roach, be careful? I don't think so. But, you know what, fine, if it spares me from you complaining." Roach smirked. He had won, but he could tell by the look on the doctors face that he didn't have any points in his favor. Roach smiled as the doctor went about his work removing the casts and replacing them with something like a cross between a bandage and a splint. It took about half an hour, and Roach readily traded his wheelchair for a pair of crutches. Doc shooed him away. "Just be careful. I spend enough time patching you up." Roach nodded and walked to the barracks with a happy look on his face. Well, the look only got happier when he got to his room, only to find Alison and Ghost both asleep already. Without a doubt, Roach joined them, closing his eyes on the bottom bunk only moments after lying down.


	33. At The Lake

**Yay! Last update for today! Love you all, thanks for reviewing!**

Ghost once again found himself consumed in black space, unable to move. He opened his eyes wide, and darted them around, trying to see anything other than black. He was not successful at first, but then he saw a figure lined in gold, glowing light coming his way. He tried to call out, only to have it found his vocal cords seemed useless. The man was Roach, in a way. Ghost wanted to flinch back, but he couldn't. It was Roach, just taller, stronger, broader shouldered. His face was bleeding, his limbs were bent, and he was bruised. He had a sneer across his face. Ghost realized that he looked exactly how he had at the shooting range that fateful night. Roach's mangled mouth opened and a deep, hollow, non-human chuckle came out. A fist came towards Ghost face and smashed into it, and sinking into his face. Ghost knew that it was a dream, but he felt the pain all the same. He tried to cry out, only to find he could no longer breathe. He shut his eyes, praying another blow wouldn't come and that he could breathe. When he did open his eyes though, he was covered in a cold sweat, and found himself lying on his mattress. He let out a breath. It had only been a dream. It was a dream, and nothing more, only another nightmare he had been plagued with. A small voice peeked through the dark. "Are you okay?" It was Alison, Ghost knew. He felt a puzzled look come over his face, even though it was dark. He whispered his reply. "Why are you up?" The reply was just as soft, and he had to crane his neck to hear it. "I have insomnia. I thought you would have noticed that by now. Anyway, it just sounded like you had a bad dream. Do you want to talk?" Ghost shook his head, but realized quickly that she couldn't see him. "No, I don't think so." She let out a soft, gentle breath that Ghost barely heard. He twitched at her reply. "Come on. You have been having lots of nightmares lately. I just want to know this latest one." Ghost squeezed his eyes shut. He was very reluctant to share his secrets with this girl, no matter how close he had grown to her in the past month and a half. "Fine" he grumbled. "Okay, I just keep dreaming that Roach comes back to me, still bleeding, and tries to hurt me. Sometimes with his fists, other times with words. It's awful" He heard a sound through the dark, but he couldn't tell what it expressed. After a moment, he heard carefully placed words. "You just need to get over it. I'm sorry, I don't want to sound mean, but you need to. He is better, and he has forgiven you. He just wants to help you get better, and we are all trying really hard to. But you don't need anyone else to find you for you. You can find yourself. I know you can." With that, she faded into silence, and though Ghost was tempted to respond, he clamped his mouth shut. Those few sentences gave him enough to think about. He didn't sleep the rest of the night, but rather dwelled on thoughts.

Roach woke at a relatively early time that morning. The clock read six o clock, and Roach groaned. He then mentally slapped himself, knowing that Ghost and Alison were both probably still sleeping. He got himself up, pulling his crutched out from under the bed and righting himself as best he could. As quiet as he could manage he slipped out of the room, and went outside, down to the mess hall. Breakfast wasn't being served quite yet, but almost all of the guys were crowded around one table. Roach, curious, went up to them. Archer seemed to be leading the conversation, and caught Roach's eye as he was heading over to them. "Hey!" Archer greeted as Roach finally arrived. Roach smiled and asked "What's going on?" Many of the guys all started to talk, so Roach held up a hand. "Wait? What?" Archer smiled. "We were all going to head down to the lake today. We were just wondering if Ghost, Alison, or you wanted to go." Roach smiled. That sounded great. He hadn't been to the lake, which was just off base, forever. Even though he wouldn't really be able to go in, it was great to know that he could visit the serene surroundings once more, and maybe even let Alison in on the peace. He nodded. "Sure, sounds great. I'll go wake those two up, and then we can get breakfast, and head out. How does that sound?" Roach didn't feel bad at all for volunteering Ghost. Archer smiled and the others let out cheers. Roach smiled himself. "Well, then, lets hurry up!" More yells in agreement, and Roach started to go back to the barracks, ready to wake his two sleeping friends.

Roach had a feeling of evilness slip into him. Well, the good kind. The kind of evil goodness that supplied the world with pranks. He snuck back into the room without a sound, then carefully, reaching up, and flicking on the glaring light. Ghost sat up in bed with a yell and Alison jumped up so abruptly she nearly tumbled out of the cot. It took maybe ten seconds of blinking before Roach got the angry stares he knew was coming. Alison, to Roach's relief, didn't look nearly as mad as Ghost. "What. The. Hell!" Ghost yelled the final word, and Roach didn't do anything more than smirk. Alison lay back on the cot, running a hand through her hair, voice a soft groan. "Come on, Roach. You didn't need to do that." Roach pulled his lips back into a smile. "Well, yes, I did. You have to wake up, because we are going to the lake." This made Alison sit up with a confused look on her face. "The lake?" Roach was more than glad to shoot into an explanation of the beautiful place. "Well, about a mile off base, there is this huge lake. It is beautiful and clear, you can see nearly to the bottom. It has this white sand, and all these pretty little rocks. There is this really huge tree nearby, and we have this rope attached to it. If you swing, you can basically fly into the lake. Once, Archer got about twenty feet into the air!" Roach felt happiness seep into him as Alison's eyes grew wide as dinner plates at the explanation. "We get to go there? Today!" It made Roach extremely happy to confirm her wishes. She squealed, actually squealed when he confirmed. Roach was ready for the onslaught of questions that followed. "When are we going? How long till we go? What will I wear? Will we eat breakfast first? Who's coming?" Roach held up a hand to slow her down. She was already getting out of bed as he answered them in a calm voice. "We are going to go really soon. All of the guys are going-We are just going to grab breakfast first. How does that sound?" She nodded. "Great!" And without looking back at him, she ran to the mess hall.

It was about half an hour later when they were all cramming into a vehicle and were headed down the dusty road, off to the lake. Alison had settled on wearing a dark t shirt* and jean shorts, and just swimming in those. All of the guys seemed to be set on topping the last story told about the lake, each trying to impress Alison more. Roach joined in, explaining how one time he had screamed like a baby when seaweed wrapped around his leg. Roach was really glad to see Alison so happy and carefree, and getting along with the guys so well. Archer seemed to really like her, which was cool with Roach. Archer was really a great guy, and Alison seemed to think he was cool also. Roach was laughing along to a story about the rope, and jumping in, when Alison let out a delighted shriek. "I can see it!" And when Roach looked, see it they could. A large, crystalline lake was just coming into view. The excited murmurs in the vehicle grew louder and louder until they shuddered to a halt just beside it. Chemo and Meat let out whoops, and the car practically exploded. The doors were flung open, people exploding from the vehicle in every direction. Most yanked off their shirts the second the exited the car, flinging them onto the beach and diving into the water, a few heading right to the rope to swing in. Roach and Alison were the last in the car, after about ten seconds of it being parked. Roach pulled himself out, grabbing the crutches he had somehow managed to store in there. Alison was still practically shaking in excitement, though she looked a little flustered. "What is it?" Roach asked as they got out. Alison shrugged, turning her red face away. Roach tilted his head to the side, like a confused dog, until he realized it. Alison was surrounded by a bunch of shirtless guys. Roach stifled a laugh, and went over to her. He draped an arm around her shoulder. "come on, you don't need to worry about that. They still don't bite." When she looked back at him, her blush was even more furious, but she nodded. She ran to the beach and dove into the water, which was already filled with yelling and laughing guys. Roach settled himself by the shore, watching the antics of the team. It was actually kind of fun.

After about five minutes, and it seemed a lot of the guys yelling to Alison. Roach couldn't make out all the words, but eventually, he saw her walk out of the water. She went over to the rope, and accepted it from a dripping wet Royce. She took a deep breath, pulled back, then ran. With the help of the rope she swung about ten feet above the surface of the lake, then let go. Her body curled into a cannonball, and Roach couldn't help but laugh when the mushroom cloud of water her jump gave off splashed any guy within reach. They were all laughing, and Roach did too. It was fun to watch everyone having a chance to goof off, let off steam. Suddenly, it seemed things in the water took a drastic turn. Now, all the guys were water wrestling, dunking each other in the water and splashing each other's faces. Roach wished sorely for a minute he could join them, but watching Alison laugh as she used her hands as a water gun to splash the guys made him happy enough. Watching a young girl who had been through so much lately play with a whole bunch of guys was definitely enough to make him happy himself.

***To all you guys reading this, a girl needs a dark t shirt when in the water if she doesn't have a swimsuit on because when wet, light t shirts are see through. Just as an fyi for you guys : )**

**Short note, very tired, late at night. Thanks for reading!**


	34. Comeback

**Here we go! One of the longest chapters yet :D I am sure all of you guys will find this suits your needs… Yes, I am sure! Warning- Last paragraph may draw strong emotions.**

About two hours later the whooping and splashing had faded, most of them all becoming tired and worn from the swimming, jumping, and playing. Roach had been sitting on the warm beach the entirety of the trip, sometimes yelling things out to his friends. Alison pulled herself out of the water, letting out a big breath. She walked over to him, wringing out the bottom of the wet green tee. "Wow! You weren't kidding when you said this place was great!" Roach shook his head. "No, really, we love it here. I just wish I could have joined you guys" Roach watched as the other men began to draw out of the water, shaking heads to rid themselves of the water clinging to their hair. Without a word Roach got up and went back over to the vehicle they arrived in. Alison jumped in right after him, snagging shotgun before any of the other guys could. Roach was in the back, stuffing his crutches underneath the seat. The other guys were there in the next few seconds, drying off with their shirts then pulling them over their heads. Roach could only laugh when yells of protest came from Alison sitting in the passenger seat. When all was said and done though, they didn't seem to mind cramming together in the back seat. With Chemo in the driver's seat the car rumbled to life and they began the noisy trip back to base. For the first time, Roach noticed that Ghost had not accompanied them.

When they arrived back at the base, everyone went immediately to the showers or barracks to clean up and get into new clothes, Alison included. She went to the showers only after all of the guys were done though, and Roach couldn't blame her. He wouldn't want to see that either. All in all, half an hour later, everyone was in fresh clothes but with the same good attitude. They were all in the rec room, cleaning up all of the liquor bottles that had accumulated, and Alison was secretly slipping Roach the ones that were still unopened. Somehow, the lake had put them in such a good mood they were willing to clean up without comment or complaint. Roach wasn't about to doubt it or question it, when once again, he found Ghost MIA. He turned to Alison. "Hey, Alison, could you go see if you could get Ghost? Lunch is coming up soon, and we wouldn't want him to miss his own party." She nodded and walked out of the room.

Ghost had been in his room, reading a magazine the entire time. He didn't care that they had all gone to the lake without him. He had only gone once or twice on his own. He knew it was a really nice place, with a warm beach and perfect, clear waters. He had gone swimming for hours alone, but never with the others. He knew all they would want to do would be to swing on that rope then try to drown each other. Ghost had never gone, because in doing so, not only would it have been against who he was, but it would mean he would have had to take off his mask if he didn't want it to get wet and full of dirt and lake water. He definitely didn't want that. So, today, he had sneakily stuck behind to read a magazine of some kind. It wasn't porn, which he had found one day stashed in the bathroom, but a sports magazine. Ghost didn't really care for sports all that much, but he had already flipped through the entire magazine on shooting and weapons. He had just flipped to the last page of the magazine when Alison walked into the room. He groaned. "I really wish you would knock or something. This isn't your room, you know." She rolled her eyes at him, to his annoyance. He couldn't stand teenagers, even though she was okay. It was just sarcastic gestures, as such, from a little girl, were annoying. "It technically is my room. Well, kind of. Anyway, stop being so grumpy! We all want you to come down for lunch!" Ghost raised an eyebrow. This invitation seemed a little suspicious. He craned his neck, trying to see if Roach was standing in the hall behind her, or any of the guys for that matter. "Who, exactly? And why?" Alison shrugged. "All of them, no joke. And I don't know exactly what for. So, unless you want them to come here and drag you out, you might want to come with me." Ghost frowned, setting the magazine down. He didn't really want to go, but lunch was soon, and he was getting hungry. He hopped off of the bunk, landing on the ground with less than a whisper. He walked out of the room, right after Alison. Shortly after he closed the door, though, she took off into a sprint towards the mess hall. Ghost could only dream and dread what would happen when Ghost came in.

Roach, in the minutes Alison was gone, had been giving all of the guys a pep talk. "So, guys, you know how Ghost has been lately, and all of you along with him?" When he said this, agreeing murmurs rippled through the crowd, a few heads nodding. "Well, we also know that Ghost is the bravest, the strongest, and he holds this team together." More sounds of agreement. "We got a little angry when he lost his mask, and we saw who he was, but we all know that our first assumptions weren't true. He is still the same underneath all that. I know that things have been pretty awful because of that, but we want him back, we want him better, don't we?" Cheers erupted, and Roach raised a hand quickly to quiet them. "Well, you all know of our plan. He should be coming this way right now with Alison, and she is going to return it to him. Now, I want to make sure he knows you all support him with all your heart. You do, right?" This time, when the cheers erupted, Roach knew there was no stopping them. Well, not until the doors burst open. Alison was there, a huge smile on her face "He's coming!" There were rustles and clumps as everyone crowded around Roach and Alison came closer. Roach pulled the piece of black cloth out of one of his pockets, and handed it to Alison. He watched her take it as if it was a piece of gold, or something delicate as a butterfly wing. He whispered to her, even though he was sure that a few of the others could hear. "Listen, Alison. Thank you so much. You've done so much, even if you don't know it. You've helped me, I know that. I know you've helped Ghost. I am sure you've helped all of these guys too. I haven't thanked you, so I am right now. You need to be the one to give this to Ghost. It would mean the most." She nodded solemnly, and turned around just as the door opened.

Roach watched as Ghost walked in, but then froze. His eyes grew wide at the sight of the cluster of men. He tilted his head to the side, eyebrows scrunched together. He opened his mouth, as if he was going to say something, but stopped as Alison started to slowly walk forward from the group, her hands behind her back, holding the piece of cloth. It was almost like a dream as she walked forward on light feet, short brown hair swishing gently from side to side. There was a moment when it seemed like everyone held a collective breath as Alison got closer to Ghost, not even a foot away, looking about half the size of the bulking figure. Roach could see her shoulders move up and down in a breath before her small voice spoke. "Ghost, you don't know how much all of these men look up to you, and love you like a brother. Some of them judged you, and they're sorry." Though much more explanation could have accompanied this, none was needed. She pulled the fabric from behind her back and held out the fixed balaclava to Ghost. Time seemed to freeze, the world tilt on its axis, in this one moment of understanding. Then, quietly and as slowly as possible, Ghost reached out and took it. Roach saw him hold it in his hands the same was Alison did, as if it was about to break, or was as fragile as glass. After a moment, Roach saw something he thought he would never see. Ghost's eyes scrunched up for a fraction of a second, and a small, glittering drop fell down his face. The tall man bit down on his lower lip once, and then using a hand, he traced the path of the scar. Roach saw that he followed it perfectly, knew the line engraved in his face without using a mirror. He knew. Roach watched as then Ghost drew in a deep breath, and pulled the fabric over his head, adjusting it to how it had always been, and always would be from now on. He turned his eyes to the group, then after a moment, Roach had his green eyes meet the icy blue. Ghost only spoke a few words. "Thank you. I'm sorry." With that, Ghost knelt down next to Alison. He whispered a few words in her ear, then the two embraced in a hug. It was an odd sight, as Ghost's arms were nearly as tall as her head, but still, anyone could tell that there was a deep bond between the two. A whisper ran through the group of men, and as Ghost stood, someone let out a whistle. Hands clapped together, feet were stomped, and a few let out whoops and whistles. Ghost barely nodded before walking out, and leaving the group to the knowledge that Ghost was back, and giving them the rest of the day to celebrate.

**Didja like it? Good! Just to let yall know, I worked my $$ off all day, so this is pretty lucky that you are reading this. Maybe one more update tonight? I hope, for yall's sake. ;) **


	35. Party In The 141

**Luv Yall, here's a cliffie for you at the end, sorry :) Its short too : (**

Ghost was overwhelmed with feeling. The girl had been as gentle as a feather when speaking to him, and handing him his mask. Most of all, he was touched that it had been repaired. The frayed mess, ripped in half, stitched carefully back together. Ghost didn't examine it, but he couldn't see the handiwork that had put it together. He had a feeling that Alison was the one to thank for this. He retreated to his bunk, taking a breath, feeling the comfort of fabric on his face. He hadn't felt it for so long… He had felt purely naked without it, he realized. He ran his hands through his hair, and then clasped them behind his head, closing his eyes. So much feeling was seeping into him. He was no longer lost, wandering. He had his identity… And they had forgiven him. Though, what had meant most to him was Alison. Through the things she said, from gestures, gentle encouragement, and occasionally, viciousness, she had repaired him. She had helped him through the mess that was his life currently. Roach had done so much also, but to know that they forgave him, and she cared, was more than he could have ever imagined or hoped for. The words he had whispered to her were merely thanks. "You don't know how much this means to me" he whispered into her ear gently with his deep and husky voice. "You have been my key to recovery. Thank you." The words had been barely a breath. Then, as natural as breathing, they pulled each other into an embrace. Ghost would have held it there forever, trying to put it across to this young girl, so affected by the things in life, things that no one should ever face, the thanks and debt he owed her. Somehow, no matter how lacking it felt to him, she must have felt it to. For, just before they released the embrace, she let out one word into his ear, no more sound than a feather tapping the ground. "Dad." That is what she had said.

Roach and the others, including Alison, stormed to MacTavish's office as a cloud of rolling thunder. They burst in without knocking, filling the small space instantly. The captain jumped nearly two inches straight into the air, dropping the pen that he was holding. "What the fuck?" he yelled as the rest of the men filtered in. Roach was pretty much unsaid spokesperson for the group. "He's back!" With that more whooping joined the tones in the room, and MacTavish smiled. He had been in on the mask secret, and it needed no explanation to know what had been done. MacTavish stood, and rounded the desk to stand with them. His lips perked into a rare smile, his eyes squinting a bit. Roach felt one of the strong arms drape around his shoulders. He started to speak, and all of the voices quieted immediately. "Men, you did well. We are back on our feet now. I think we have someone to thank, though." He turned to Roach, and patted his back. "Not only Roach here, but another person. I know that she's here, somewhere." And as Roach turned, true to what MacTavish said, Alison stood, looking as small as ever in the doorway. MacTavish retrieved his arm, and turned towards Alison. Roach watched as the men parted like the red sea for Moses, clearing an isle for MacTavish to walk to Alison. His brows furrowed, and Roach drew in a silent breath. Alison looked like a deer in the headlights as MacTavish looked down on her, and Roach knew that her past experiences with the man had not been the most pleasant. MacTavish walked towards her with slow, sturdy steps, each boot tapping the ground with its own ominous sound. Alison seemed to shrink as the shadow of MacTavish came closer, and eventually, the man himself stood only a small distance from her. Alison's eyes grew so wide they seemed that they would pop from her head, when MacTavish suddenly and stiffly stuck out a hand. The look of fear subsided, and she took the hand and shook it, and without warning, MacTavish pulled her into a half hug. When moments earlier you could have heard a pin drop in the room, now you could hear hushed sighs of relief, and chuckles of things unsaid. Alison had a small smile cross her face, her head only making it to slightly below the captains chest. When he drew away, a smile was on his face. He knelt down, so he was her level now. "You, I owe you a lot. Thank you so much. You have done much for us as a team." Roach cheered as he stood, and MacTavish yelled above the men. "Alright, alright. Go have some fun! You deserve it!" And with that, they began to flood out of the room, Alison going with Archer. Just as Roach turned to leave himself, a hand clamped on his shoulder. Roach turned around to see MacTavish. The last man had already walked out and shut the door. MacTavish had a grim look on his face. Roach tensed. "What is it, sir?" MacTavish went around to the other side of his desk, and sat down. "Roach, we need to talk about Alison."


	36. Break Your Dance

**Surprised at the update? So am i! Thank you all for reading, this is a pretty long one. Please, I want you all to remember, Roach has moved to flexible wraps kind of holding his injuries in place, and he cant feel them. That will be important in one of these paragraphs : ) I hope you all enjoy!**

Roach knew it was coming, and had known it in the back of his mind since Alison joined them. Though he knew, and was sure MacTavish knew he knew, but the captain started from the beginning anyway. "Roach, you are the best damn soldiers out there. You could whoop the marines, the SEAL's; you top them without a doubt.** But, that's the thing. We are a secret, elite military operation. We are in the middle of God damn Russia hunting down this generations Hitler. Now, this is no place for a young girl. Not the place for a young girl at all. I know she has helped us all, and repaired us, and we owe her more than ever can be repaid, but it's time for her to go. Social Services are meeting us at an airport, to take her. She will find a nice family to live with, I can promise you. She leaves the day after tomorrow. I'm sorry, Roach." Roach, as before, knew this was coming, but couldn't bear to hear the words out loud. "But-But sir, cant she do something? She could, paint guns? Organize gear? Be a secretary of sorts?" Roach pleaded in a thin, grief torn voice. MacTavish shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry, Roach, if she were older, those might have been considered. But, she is still a child, barely thirteen. But, you have one more day with her. You can embrace that. Just, maybe, it might not be the best idea to tell her right away. Maybe tell her that morning. As it goes, we will leave in a helicopter at around ten and be at the airport after a half an hour flight. You and a few of the guys can come to say goodbye." Roach swallowed the lump forming in his throat, and tried to push away the tears that brimmed at the edges of his emerald green eyes. "Y-yes sir. I will make sure that she has a good time the next day. She has earned it a thousand times over." Roach heard his voice crack at the end, and hoped the captain hadn't noticed. MacTavish only shook his head. "Make sure that happens Roach." Roach nodded and walked out slowly, trying to stop his hands from shaking as he gripped the knob on the door. He closed it with a gentle click, and went down to the rec room where he could hear telltale signs of a party, blaring music and yells, crashes mixed in with all of the above. Roach knew that this was indeed a full-fledged party. Half in hope, half in dread, he walked into the room.

Yes, somehow, he was met by the bright flashes of something close to a strobe. He blinked his eyes once and adjusted to the bright flashing of the screen. Yes, that's how it appeared. All of the furniture in the middle of the room, and in front of the TV, had all been pushed aside to the walls. Some kind of dance party thing was going on the TV, bright colors flashing and music blaring. The cheers were to be expected, but what he saw in front of the flashing screen was unexpected. There was Rook, an Australian boy, on the floor… break dancing. Roach could only blink as he did some sort of weird spin on one arm thing, and then jumped to his feet with a break. Someone let out a shrill whistle, shrieking through the room. Archer, who was sitting on one of the couches, was the first to notice him come in. "Hey Roach!" He called over the screaming music. "How about you try?" Roach froze, and scratched the back of his head. It had been forever since he tried dancing, and it had never been in front of anyone else. He shrugged, but Roach felt his eardrums near shatter as they all let out yells. He searched the crowd quickly for Alison, and found her face at the front row of people, right next to Rocket. She smiled at him and nodded enthusiastically. He rolled his eyes overly sarcastically, but with his new found news, he couldn't refuse. The music started up, and Roach remembered. He was young, and he had taken a break dancing class. They had done a dancing routine to something as a teenager, a song by Usher. He remembered some of the moves, but not the song. The beat was a steady one, and someone yelled, it sounded like Worm "Hey, it's starting!" Roach stepped into the middle of the cleared spot, and his eyes widened as he recognized the song. Could it be, was it the same? Oh, yes, it was. The name and routine suddenly flooded into him. Someone again, this time it sounded like Royce screamed out "Usher, Yeah!" Roach shook his shoulders once as the music, and the intro began.

- Peace up a town

Yeah, ok! Lil' Jon-

Roach cracked his knuckles briefly, and then dropped to the floor as the song began.

-I'm in the club with my homies, tryna get a lil v-I,

Keep it down on the low key, cause you know how it feels.

I said shawty she was checkin' up on me,

From the game she was spittin' my ear you'd think that she knew me.

So we decided to chill

Conversation got heavy,

She had me feelin' like she's ready to blow

(Watch out oh, watch out)

She saying comes get me, come get me,

So I got up and followed her to the floor,

She said baby lets go,

When I told her I said

Yeah (yeah) shawty got down said come and get me

Yeah (yeah) I got so caught up I forgot she told me yeah yeah

Yeah (yeah) Her and my girl were the best of homies

Yeah (yeah) next thing I knew she was all up on me screaming

[Chorus]

Shes all up in my head now,

Got me thinking that it might good idea to take her with me,

Cause she's ready to leave.

Now I gotta keep it real now,

Cause on a one-to-ten she's a certified twenty,

And that just ain't me.-

His body had been going into a spin on the ground, his body twisting back and forth. He had jumped up to his feet, done a toe stand, and then fell back to the ground. There were cheers and whistles all around him, but he didn't hear them. He melted into the song, and let the lyrics and old rhythms overcome him.

- Cause I do know if I take that chance just where is it gonna lead,

But what I do know is the way she dance makes shawty alright with me.

The way she getting low!

I'm like yeah, just work that out for me.

She asked for one more dance and I'm

Like yeah, how the hell am I supposed to leave?

And I said

Yeah (yeah) shawty got down to come and get me

Yeah (yeah) I got so caught up I forgot she told me

Yeah (yeah) cause if my girl new it'd be best to hold me

Yeah (yeah) next thing I knew she was all up on me screaming

[Chorus]

Luda

Watch out

My outfit's ridiculous, in the club lookin' so conspicuous.

And rowl! these women all on the prowl,

If you hold the head steady I'm a milk the cow.

Forget about the game I'm a spit the truth,

I won't stop till I get em in they birthday suits.

So gimmie the rhythm and it'll be off with the clothes,

Then bend over to the front and touch your toes.

I left the jag and I took the Rolls,

If they ain't cutting then I put em on foot patrol.

How you like me now,

When my pinky's valued over three hundred thousand,

Let's drank you the one to please,

Ludacris fill cups like double d's.

Me and Ush once more and we leave em dead,

We want a lady in the street but a freak in the bed to say

Yeah (yeah) shawty got down to come and get me

Yeah (yeah) I got so caught up I forgot she told me

Yeah (yeah) cause if my girl new it'd be best to hold me

Yeah (yeah) next thing I knew she was all up on me screaming:

[Chorus]

Take that and rewind it back,

Lil' Jon got the beat to make ya booty go (clap)

Take that and rewind it back,

Usher got the voice make ya booty go (clap)

Take that and rewind it back,

Ludacris got the flow make ya booty go (clap)

Take that and rewind it back,

Lil' Jon got the beat make ya booty go (clap)-

Roach, panting, leaped to his feet and crossed his arms. His breathing was heavy, and a bead of sweat rolled down the side of his face. He hadn't even known he could stretch that was any more. It was actually odd that he remembered the whole thing, but there he was amidst the cheers and whistles. Suddenly, the guys clouded around him and somehow lifted him onto their shoulders. Roach knew he weighed a lot, but the was like a feather on their shoulders. Suddenly, the he saw the doors burst open, and Doc walked in. He saw Roach, and screamed. An actual scream. Roach froze, and so did everyone else, though the screen continued to flash and the music to fade out. Doc stormed up to him, and Roach felt his face grew red. He was prepared for him to yell, or give him a lecture, but the only words that came out of Doc's mouth were seething with rage. "This is why I don't trust you." Then, with that, the steaming doctor walked out. IT was still in the room, no one really moving much. In truth, Roach hadn't felt his injuries, and was much less hindered without the casts. Someone let out a sole clap, and the party continued. It turned out, even though that was exciting, the party was just getting started.

**** In writing this, I knew this opened me to some flames. Now, I want you all to know this, if you haven't figured it out already. Call of Duty is fictional, and in the video games, they do top the seals and any other force. Worm actually came from the seals. I am not disrespecting the military in any way. I have someone in the family who is a SEAL and another who serves in the army. I respect them and what they do very much, and what others do for this country. Please do not take this the wrong way, as this is true for this fictional piece.**

**Now, there is the end of the note. Something to lighten the mood, the next chapter I post will be 120% pure party. You liked Roach break dancing with injuries? Yeah, so did i! You don't know the song, youtube Yeah by Usher. Great song, I love it. I can so see Roach dancing. :P Anyway, hope you enjoyed!**

**-Dancing Tiger, out**

**Oh, and BTW, feel free to make insane party suggestions :D**


	37. Tipsy

**Oh. My. Gosh. Worked really hard on this chapter, and added a few suspicious things to my Google history, as I don't know about… Well, you'll see. Anyways, the bulk of the idea for this goes to UniqueBeing. Thank you so much, hope this makes you happy! And this chapter is also to Queenkhs, one of my best motivators!**

Yes, it may be hard to believe, but a pants splitting awesome dance party was only the beginning. It may have been the most wild in terms of action, but soon after a few of the other guys tried to dance, the party moved over to the pool and poker tables. Roach was taking the compliments he got from his dancing courteously, but when Alison told him how great he was, he smiled probably wider than he ever had before. "Roach, that was awesome! How did you do that?" Roach shrugged, not paying much attention to the others as the wrestled for the deck of cards. "It's not that hard. I took a class a while back, and that happened to be one of the songs we did a routine to, I guess you could say." Her mouth formed a stunned 'o' and it looked like she was going to say something more, but that was when the game officially commenced. Roach looked at his cards, and knew he had no chance, and knew that he could never bluff. Well, he was right in that, but in the end it was Alison who won. Roach laughed. " I never knew that a thirteen year old could beat Royce at poker." This was true. Next to Ghost, Royce was one of the best that they had. Yet, Alison beat him. His face looked steamy and red, probably from both anger and embarrassment. Alison shrugged sheepishly. "Hey, he's the one who taught me. Thanks Royce!" The man just shook his head, and muttered something about not teaching her that good, but it was soon interrupted by Rook, who suggested a Call of Duty tournament. No one in the task force disagreed, so they pulled the couch back in front of the TV. Alison ran up and started the Xbox right away, grabbing a controller and sitting down on the couch. "So, who's first?" she asked, cracking a few knuckles. Archer jumped onto the couch beside her and grabbed a controller of his own, and they began the first round.

-Two hours later-

A large groan went up from all of the men as the screen read "Victory" for Alison. She only laughed as Toad miserably set the controller down. Roach smiled, shaking his head. Toad was the best they had, and she had just whooped his ass. He put up a few various protests, but Roach knew that Alison was that good. She yawned, and set down her controller also. Roach watched her walk up to him, still yawning. "Hey, Roach, I'm not tired yet, but I am hungry. Can we get some food, or a drink?" Roach nodded, noticing the other men had a look on their faces that said they were itching for beer or liquor of some sort. Roach knew that earlier he had vowed to break them away from the bottles, but this was such a victory tonight, they had earned it. Roach turned towards the door so he could go to the kitchen, and yelled to Rocket "Hey, Rocket, get everyone some drinks! Make sure you get something for Alison too!" Roach felt something in the back of his head that wanted to add 'make sure it's something like water!' but, Rocket knew she was only thirteen. There wouldn't be a problem, he was sure of it. Well, something in the back of his mind said "well, are you sure?"

Roach was surprised to find that in the kitchen the cooks were already preparing some kind of party platters. They had large dishes stacked high with crackers, dips, chips, other snack type foods. He decided to spend a few minutes helping them finish up with the dishes before carrying them back to the group in the rec room. Rocket had gotten all the drinks, or so he heard, and was pretty confident that the voice in the back of his head was wrong. He had to use both hands to juggle the large platters into the rec room. He made a beeline for the group of guys, all crowded around the flimsy card table, for two reasons. The first being to set the heavy food laden plates down, and the other to see just what was going on. He shouldered his was through, and set the plates down. What he saw though, made him sure that he would have dropped them had he been holding them. Alison was sitting in one of the chairs, Rocket to one side and Worm to the other. In front of her were three plastic cups, each filled with a brown liquid. Roach knew that it was beer, but to his dismay, there were already two empty cups lined up beside the others. Alison had a sour look on her face, and according to the noise, they were cheering her on to drink another. Roach felt the anger bubble up inside of him as if he were a volcano, the red hot rage sweeping from his toes to his head. If this was a cartoon, there would have been steam coming out of his ever reddening ears. Eventually, his throat found the strength to hoarsely scream "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?" Most of the noise stopped, eyes drawing towards him. Alison's eyes were as big as dinner plates, seeming as if they would pop from her head. The thing was, it wasn't Alison he was mad at. He was sure she was the victim of one trick or another, or possibly just been bullied into it by a whole bunch of guys. He glowered at Rocket. "What is this?" The man's eyes followed in suite to Alison's, and he only scratched the back of his head and cast his eyes to the side. Roach growled, and turned to Alison. "Alison? What is this?" She shrugged, the look on her face telling Roach she knew something was wrong, but was kind of being a teenager-being rebellious. "Well, Rocket came over here, and said that one of these had coke in it. He said if I found the coke, he would give me the rest of the can. I shoulda guessed what the others would be, and I did, but I didn't care… Sorry." Roach pinched the bridge of his nose in a sudden, paranoid motherly moment. Then he turned his gaze back on Rocket. "You. Are. The. Most. Stupid. Human. Being. That. Has. Ever. Lived." Roach articulated each word carefully, staring Rocket straight in the face as he did so. The man rubbed the back of his neck nervously with one hand, mumbling softly. "Well, I thought it would be kinda funny…" Roach exploded. "KIND OF FUNNY? WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT GIVING A THIRTEEN YEAR OLD BEER IS FUNNY? HOW COULD YOU BE SO GODAMN STUPID?" Rocket mumbled again. Roach took a deep breath, trying to calm down his red face. After a moment, he turned to Alison. "Alison, are you alright? Do you feel funny or anything?" She shook her head. "No, I feel fine. But there is one thing I don't understand…" "What is it?" "How you guys drink that stuff all the God damn time! It tastes awful!"

After the little 'beer incident' things settled down as the men set their eyes like hungry animals on the plates of food, and set down to snacking, pool, and more Call of Duty. It turned out, though Alison was quite the master at both COD and poker, pool seemed to trip her up. She couldn't hold the cue quite right, and Roach desperately tried to explain to her that you don't want the white ball to go in. "But it's a ball! Isn't the point of this to get a ball in a pocket?" Roach could only try in vain to convince her. Eventually she, in frustration, threw the cue at Worm, and it hit him right in his side. He cried out as soon as it hit him, and he jumped, surprised. When he found out who threw it, he could only give a simmering glare. Roach realized that Alison being who she was basically put a protective coating around her. He felt a tug on his sleeve. "Come on Roach. I want to try my luck at the foosball table." Roach relented, and they went over to join Archer and Toad, who were already engrossed in the game. Roach settled down next to Alison, who was smiling. Roach felt a smile creep up on his own face. He was making her happy, which was all that mattered at this point.

About half an hour later, Alison turned to him. "Hey, Roach, I'm thirsty again. Can you get something to drink, this time without the 'you have to find the coke' catch? You know what, maybe just some water would be good." Roach nodded, and walked over to Rook. "Hey, Rook, could you get Alison some water?" The man nodded. Roach didn't know why he asked Rook to do it. He should have done it himself, but he had a sudden feeling of laziness sweep over him. He hadn't been drinking or smoking, as many of the others had. He wanted to stay sober to a point for Alison. A few moments later Rook appeared with a cup in hand filled with a clear liquid. Roach smiled. Finally, someone who could get something right. He thanked Rook briefly, then handed the cup to Alison. "Here you go. Something that you can drink." She smiled. "Thanks." And Roach continued to play as she took a small break to rehydrate. She rejoined him a few seconds later, smiling, and throwing the empty cup aside. "Let's play." Roach smiled, and they restarted the game of foosball they had begun earlier.

It was only a small while later that another dance party was suggested. Of course, it had stopped mostly after Roach's show stopping break dancing, but there were still a few guys who wanted their chance. Archer was supposed to do a mean shuffle, while Meat could kill it with the robot. They pushed the couches aside, and they all formed a circle around the open space. The music was started up again, and the dancing began. Toad went first, with a less impressive act of his own. Most people were all yelling or fist pumping, and Roach noticed that he was one of the only ones not participating in that. So, what else would he do but join? Roach put his fist into the air and started following in suite with his neighbor, putting his fist into the air and going with the beat of the music. Alison was on his left, doing the exact thing, jumping sometimes too. Meat's song ended, and cheers rippled through the crowd. Suddenly, he felt Alison lean up against him. He looked down at her, as she righted herself, and shook her head. "Anything wrong?" He asked, concerned, seeing her sway for a moment. She shook her head again, as if she had a fog surrounding her head. He frowned, his voice taking on a concerned tone. "No, you don't look alright…" She mumbled something, then seemed to rasp out "Can we sit down?..." Roach felt his eyebrows furrow. "Sure…" He turned her away from the crowd, and started to help her towards the nearest couch. She tripped a few times, to the point where Roach put his arms on her shoulders to keep her righted. When they did get to the couch, she collapsed. Roach sat down next to her. He figured the first step to finding out what was wrong would be to ask her. "Hey, Alison, you don't look good. How do you feel?" She shook her head. "Dunno… Feel.. fine Iguss…" Roach bit a lip. Her words were beginning to slur together. "Are you sure?" She shook her head. "Naw, feels like everything is spinning… Its foggy… I'm sooo pretty. Roach, you look smexy…" Roach felt his eyes grow wide for a moment, and it took him another moment to piece it together. Slurred words, blurred vision, tipsy, at the least, and saying odd things. No other conclusion came to him-Alison was drunk.

Roach turned to her again. "Hey, uh, Alison, did you drink anything funny other than the water?" She shook her head. "Nu, but th' wat'r did taste kinda fun'y" Roach groaned. Rook could have gotten her some kind of liquor that looked like water, and she had drank all of it. Why she hadn't shown any sign of it till now was a mystery, but Roach knew that he had to do something. "Um, okay, you know what, how about we go sit down, or you go to bed, or see if Doc can get you something…" In saying this, Roach really did hope that Doc had something for this. He didn't want her to spend tomorrow with a killer hangover or anything. 'hell' he thought to himself. 'She's thirteen. She shouldn't have to worry, or me worry for her, about getting a hangover' he shook his head, and snapped back to reality. Alison was leaned up against him, and was shaking a bit. She didn't seem to notice. She spoke in a raspy, slurred tone. "Roach… You lookin' hot…" Roach decided then it was vital to get her to Doc. He scooped her up in his arms, not wanting her to trip or stumble and get hurt, and went straight to the infirmary while the whole time she was slurring about him being hotter than Ghost and Archer combined, and then going on to compliment herself.

Roach got to the infirmary quickly, and had to go in and talk to Doc. The good man was still mad at him for his stunt with dancing earlier, but in seeing Alison he seemed more than happy to help. He laid her down on a bed, and slowly began to check her over. "She is very, very drunk Roach. How, may I ask?" Roach rubbed his head, gently pushing Alison back on the bed as she reached up to give him a hug. "It's a long story. Just, how can we make her better?" Roach fidgeted as the doctor shrugged. "I don't know. She seems to be taking it very well, considering how much you told me she drank. It'll just have to work its course, and we can pray." Just as he finished saying this, Alison muttered "Gonna' be sick…" Roach jumped back, panicking, but Doc was ready. He grabbed a basin nearby, and Roach could only wince as Alison got sick. When all was said and done though, she looked a little bit better. "Mrghm…" She muttered, laying back on the pillows. "Feel better. Sleepy. Gonna go'ta sleep. Wanna gota sleep too Roach?" Roach only smiled sadly and shook his head. "Just get some rest." He gently petted her head until she fell asleep in the hospital bed, then carried her back to the room and laid her on the cot, then watched her sleep into the late hours of the night, even after the others had gone to bed.

**Now, I don't know what its like to get drunk, so I had to look it up… I know I am sure I got it wrong, but I hope you like it! GTG, sorry! Love you all! : )**


	38. Left Shaking On His Knees

**I know, short chapter, long long long authors note at bottom. :-) Tissue warning!**

The light of dawn crept through the curtains with a warm feeling to it. Roach was sitting stiff, a still guardian in a chair next to Alison's cot. He heard a slight stirring behind him, and looked up to Ghost's bunk. The man was waking, the grinning skull pulled down tight over his face. His ice blue eyes blinked open, and Roach smiled faintly. "Hey." He whispered. Ghost growled halfheartedly. "What is it, bug? Something wrong with Alison?" Roach nodded. "I guess you could say that. One of the guys got her some liquor instead of water. She got drunk, and then kind of passed out. I've been watching her the night to make sure she was okay." Ghost gave a gruff sound in response; one that Roach hoped was a positive one. Ghost slid down from the bunk, and walked over next to Roach. "Hey, what do you think about training in the pit later? I know, I shouldn't be asking, but Alison, if you need to stay with her today…" In Ghost asking this, Roach felt another pang of agony and misery come upon his heart in a torrent. "Ghost, thanks. Today is her last day." Roach felt the air in the room suddenly fill with a crackling stiff tension. "What?" Ghost asked, in a surprised voice. Roach nodded miserably in confirmation. "We are taking her in a helicopter to an airport tomorrow. If you want to come, I think she would like that. I just want her last day to be enjoyable." Ghost rolled back on his heels. "Shit. Really? When did you find out?" Roach swallowed, painfully recalling the conversation with MacTavish. "Yesterday. I'm not telling her until tonight. Please, don't tell anyone else though. I want her to be happy while she is with us for the last bit of time." Ghost nodded stiffly, and then went out of the room without another word.

Ghost had to try with all his might not to shut the door in frustration at the news. Alison would be leaving tomorrow, and he most likely would never see her again. He passed MacTavish's office, and his hand tentatively reached out to the handle as he neared it. Then, he drew back just before he touched it, as if it was searing hot. By the sound of rustling papers, the captain was in there, but Ghost didn't really want to talk to anyone. He exited the building and went over to the very edge of the camp, walking past the shooting range where he swore that blood still stained the ground, past the infirmary where weeks earlier Rook lay bleeding from a bullet wound, where many weeks earlier Alison lay like a crumpled rose. He walked up to the edge of the dull, steel, chain link fence. His thoughts were like storm clouds, but the low and dark ones, rather than the spiraling, black, maddening ones that had been in there the past month. His thoughts were now a sane man's thoughts, but they were still plagued. He linked his black gloved fingers between the links of the fence, peering out to the sun still low in the morning sky. Ghost felt like an animal. He was longing to break free of the fence, tear through the barbed wire, crush down anything in his way, rip off the chains of bondage that was any threat left in the world, anyone who could harm another child like Alison. Ghost fell to his knees, leaning up like a sick man against the fence. He moaned in agony, groaned in the pain of what he thought. What evil could possibly lead a man to massacre hundreds, millions, rob children of their parents, of parents of their children? Ghost squeezed his eyes tight, the thought of losing his own parents coming to him in a mad, rushing river. Ghost had gone about trying to stop these men for years, the ones that were murders with blood on their hands and ice and lead in their hearts, yet he had never really thought about it. He had never come face to face with someone who he had saved, given another chance. Now that he had, he didn't think he could let her go. His thoughts went back to their conversation over a month earlier. -"Well, that's sad. You deserve to be thanked. You shouldn't have to think that being gone unnoticed and not thanked is normal. You deserve better."- She had told him. He had replied icily. -"You really think that, kid? Well get with the program. Life isn't all sugar and rainbows. You do something, you don't get thanked, you count it as the norm. Life goes on."- Ghost thought to himself, suddenly, collapsed on the ground, she was partially right. Not that he deserves, or is entitled to thanks. But, having it was great. He knew that he couldn't abandon her, but had to give her away, for the sake of a better future for her. He shook in agony, misery, and thoughts. He only prayed that no one would notice.

**Now, one of my reviewers, Nioba, I believe is the first person I have come across to state what we should all know, and some obviously don't- This is fiction, so anything can happen! (Direct quote, credit to Nioba.) Anyway, with the whole 'get 'er drunk' thing, that was a work of fiction. I have, as she (or he) guessed, I have never drank before. Ever. Not giving away my age or anything, but me drinking would be illegal, and I never plan to. So sorry if I got anything wrong for that part, or getting drunk. To my anonomous reviewer who was ever so kind to call my thing *creepy* for "A whole bunch of grown men trying to get a little girl drunk* two things. If you want to read creepy, check out edgar allen poe. I can list a whole bunch of his works from the top of my head, and now those are creepy, sick and twisted. And second of all, I am sure that Rook would never want to get her drunk. He probably was drunk himself and grabbed the wrong bottle. As for the part about Rocket, he is just plain flat out I got hit in the head with a mallet dumb. So, if you look at the word fanfiction, 7/10 of it is the word FICTION, so anyone who is tempted to flame for things being unrealistic, remember that! Thank you all, sorry this is so short! Not to mention, I am now taking requests for the following-**

**1-I want Archer, Roach, and Ghost all to give Alison a different token/trinket to remember her by when she leaves. Idea's welcome.**

**2-I want ideas for them to spend their last day together. Also open to anything reasonable! No, just as a spoiler for my head, she will not have a hangover : )**

**3-This story is wrapping up! I will take requests for a new story because I have nothing good in my head. I will do one shots (Humor, angst, etc.) on request, but I do not to slash nor bromance. Sorry to those of you who like it!**

**That's all, Dancing Tiger, out!**


	39. Final Day

**Okay! We are so close to being done :-( Probably only two or three more chapters, max. Then, I might do an epilogue if requested… (Or I might just do one anyway) To pretty much all of my signed reviewers (That includes Queenkhs, Nioba, SMakarov, Unique Being, Migisi, and a few others I cant name off the top of my head) you have my sincerest apologies. First problem, I have not been able to post reviews on your stories (I read all of them you guys!) from any of my devices. (Computer, etc) because of issues logging in, or an issue with review window not opening, or not doing anything whatsoever. This is a pain, and I am trying to get it fixed. Another thing is, this should have been posted yesterday. I just thought that I got no reviews the past, nearly two days, even from my friends IRL. So, I figured something was just up and no one wanted to review. It made me sad, I will admit. And, I had no ideas from the requests at the bottom of the last chapter! So, I check it this morning, and there are two days worth of emails in my inbox :0 So, it turns out my email lagged for two days. Sorry! I had over ten emails from fanfiction o.O anyways, this is just more of a filler chapter. Decent (short) length, but at the bottom I will do another note explaining a little more on why it is a filler. Thanks for bearing with me with this long note, once again, apologies. Now start reading :)**

It was nearly half an hour of exasperation later that Roach jumped to his feet as Alison walked in the room. "What took you so long?" He asked in a near frantic tone. She raised an eyebrow in his direction, and shot him the look that said 'what's up with you?' Alison shook her wet hair, wringing it with a towel she had tossed over her shoulder. "I took a shower, got dressed, and brushed my teeth. Not much else. It didn't take me to long-"Roach cut her off "That's very long! We could have done a whole lot in that half hour!" She raised the eyebrow again, tilting her head to the side. "Yeah, I know, and I chose to neaten up and smell better. Is something wrong?" Roach wanted to shake his head, and scream to her that yes, something was wrong, but instead, he shook his head. "No, nothing's wrong. I just thought that we could have a really fun day. You know, anything you want." He wanted to scream as she shook out her hair again, for what he cared, the thousandth time. She sighed. "Sure, sounds, good. What do you want to do?" Roach shrugged, trying to appeal ideas to her. "Anything you want. We can do some more shooting, maybe play some poker with the guys in the rec room, or something else. Anything you want. We have all day, into the night if you want." He took a breath when thoughtfulness crossed her face. She was finally thinking seriously. After a moment, which seemed like an eternity to Roach, she nodded her head slightly. "I think that it would be cool if we could maybe go shoot some more. I really liked that." Roach smiled. Once again, something that he could do, and could teach, and something that they would both enjoy. Without more than another word of confirmation, they walked out of the room.

Roach helped Alison position the rifle, then adjust her stance. This was the first time he was able to help her actually by himself, rather than having Archer along. She didn't need much help; she fell naturally into the position that she learned. Roach thought absent mindedly to himself about how she was actually a pretty good shot as she shot into the exact center of a circular target. He smiled. She turned to him, looking quizzical. "Was that okay?" She asked. Roach nodded his head up and down vigorously. "Yes, definitely. Do you want to try a moving target?" Her eyes grew wide, and Roach realized she probably hadn't seen or heard of moving targets. He held up a finger to tell her he needed a second, then ran to the small electric box. He flipped a few switches up, praying they were the right ones, and they were. After a slight wait and a small humming, a few of the targets began to move slowly from side to side on a track. Alison smiled wide, and Roach was overcome with the guilt that today would probably be her last time ever doing something like this. She eagerly got back into the correct stance and shot carefully at the targets. Now that they were moving, she wasn't doing as great, but Roach gave her some tips on how to adjust to move with the targets, and therefore shoot successfully. He noticed how she was making such progress in such a short span of time. He thought for a moment that if they had a bit more time she would begin to shoot better. Well, he realized with a pang, that there would be no more time.

After they finished at the shooting range they went over to a spot that Roach picked. "What is it?" She asked him as they walked. Roach only made his lips a thin line and continued to walk with a look of comic superiority on his face. "Come on!" She pestered gently. Roach shook his head, and tried to put up with her bugging until they got to where he wanted to be. They were near the fence at the base of a large, thick, sturdy branched tree. Roach stopped purposefully and leaned his back against the tree. Alison stopped, cocking her head to the side. "Where is it? What is it?" Roach smiled for the first time in the walk to get there. "This is it." Her brows furrowed. "What? The tree?" Roach smiled, nodding. He knew that she would get it. She wrinkled her nose. "Archer told me you have this- for lack of better way to put it, you have a thing for trees. You climb them, you sit in them, sleep in them, and he says he once caught you hugging one…" Roach put up his hands, shaking his head defensively. "No way! Chemo duct taped me there. I would never hug a tree. But, yes, I do like them. They are pretty, and if you find the right one, you can chill in the branches." He smiled as he saw the look on her face. Wide green eyes, peering up into the thick, green branches. The sunlight filtered through the leaves, dappling the ground. "It is pretty." She stated after a moment of thought. Without warning, Roach grabbed one of the lower branches and pulled himself into the tree in half a second, climbing the branches with a grace that anyone would be surprised he could achieve. When he peered down from one of the tallest branches he could sit on safely, he saw Alison looking up at him. Her faint voice carried up through the leaves and branches to him. "How do you do that?" "Practice!" He called back down to her. He shimmied down a few branches, and sat casually with his back against the trunk. She just shook her head. "Never would have thought. I figured that Archer was kidding. You are good." Roach shrugged nonchalantly with a casual look on his face. "I guess you could say that. I had a lot of trees where I grew up." Alison nodded with an impressed look on her face. "Where did you grow up?" The question brought back a flood of memories that Roach eagerly explained, which brought on bittersweet ones from Alison, and they sat there exchanging stories for the better part of two hours.

The sun began to shine down hot on his back, even through the blessed canopy of the tree. Roach slid down the trunk, landing with no more than a whisper on the ground beside Alison. She was on a patch of grass beneath the tree, her back leaned up against the trunk. "So? Ready for lunch?" He asked her. So far, this was a pretty good day 'but its half over!' he screamed to himself inside his head. She picked herself up off the ground and dusted off her legs. "Sure." She said, stretching out her arms. They walked over to the mess hall, making small talk about the weather and video games, and then settled down at Roach's usual table with a bunch of the other guys. Meat seemed to be in the mood for telling stories of pranks of days past, and they surely entertained Alison. She was laughing hard, at one point she nearly choked on the food that she was eating. The meal was lightly breaded chicken, corn, cornbread, and tomato soup. Alison claimed that most of them were her favorite, another thing that Roach thanked God for. She had been happy all day. Just as Meat went into detail about how he rigged a water balloon launching device, Roach noticed Ghost walk in. No one else seemed to notice as the masked man went over to his usual spot and sat in the normal silence he did, conversing only with MacTavish when the man entered the room. Roach didn't really pay attention for more than a few seconds, though. He was now completely focused on a story Alison was telling him about a dog and a cat.

**So, here we go on a few things. This is a filler. About the tree thing, he has already shimmied up trees twice in my story, and for some reason, he just seems like the kind of guy that would do that. I also read about him doing something similar in another story. So, don't mind the tree part, just a personal thing, I guess. So, it is a filler because I didn't get the reviews, and because I need help with something. I have the next chapter okay, but it is the chapter after that I am worried about. Next chapter will be up later today, and it is the day finishing up and Roach having to tell Alison that she is leaving the next day. Heartbreak will be in it, I am sure. But, here is the thing. She has become pretty close with Ghost, Roach, Archer, and pretty much all of the guys, right? Well, I want the three mentioned to give her parting gifts. I want them all to be something heartfelt. I am thinking that Archer is going to give her the casing to a bullet that nearly hit him his first mission, and claims has given him luck. He wants her to have luck too, so he gives it to her. As for Roach and Ghost though, I am clueless, and here is the thing-How cool would it be for another author use your idea in their story? Here is the opportunity! Give me an idea, and you are nearly gaurenteed! Unless I get like one from each of you, but then I will try to meet all of them. Anyway, please, give me some help! Thank you for actually finishing this impossible authors note : ) off to work on next chapter. **


	40. Breaking The News

**This was supposed to be up last night. Sorry! Now I have plenty of suggestions for the going away tokens. So sad, writing that right now : ( So, anyway, here is the chapter for you! Hope that you find it okay!**

After lunch, they all went to the rec room to play poker. Well, everyone with the exception of Ghost, MacTavish, and Worm. Roach knew that the first two never participated in rec room activities other than poker late at night. They all started out doing just that, when Roach noticed Meat and Chemo shooting each other looks. That was never a good thing, and Roach wanted to make sure they weren't planning anything that could make Alison mad. Roach put his cards down. "Hey, Meat, Toad, what's up? You guys look like something is up." Meat gave a subtle shake of his head in Chemo's direction, but Roach caught it. "I saw that. Come on guys, fess up." Meat set his cards down, defeated. Roach saw Alison perk up as the man seemed to give up. Roach realized she probably knew that Meat was a big pranker, but not as well as the others. Roach glared at Meat. "Come on. What are you planning now?" Meat shuffled in his seat. "Well, Worm said that he was going to his room to clean up a bit, and we were thinking that we could make his room even worse." Roach groaned. "How?" Meat shrugged. "Pretty simple. It's great that these doors open in, you know? Because, this way, we can play a really great prank. If you prop up a trash can full on water on the door, and he opens it, the bucket falls in, soaking the floor with water. Simple." Roach looked on with wide eyes, anxious at how eager Alison looked when she was listening. She was also smiling. Roach sighed as she piped up. "Cool! Can I help?" Roach would have usually stopped her, knowing that anything involving Meat and Chemo was a bad idea, but she looked so happy, that it would crush him to crush her. So he relented. "Fine, if I get to help." Meat let a grin slide over his face. "So, let's get this started."

Roach stood next to Alison, who was squished between him and Meat. They were currently filling up a large trash can with water. "Come on, does this go any faster?" Meat murmured. Roach shook his head, and Alison checked to see how full it was. "Almost you guys. I think we can stop… Now!" Meat reached over and slammed the water off, the last few drops falling into the trash can. The three hefted it up a few inches off the ground together, and awkwardly carried it to the front of Worm's door. "Shoe?" Meat muttered. Roach produced the thick treaded shoe from his pocket, and Alison helped to wedge it tightly under the can. Roach stepped back along with Meat. Roach could see that Alison had her fingers crossed tightly, and they all held their breath waiting for it to begin to slide. It didn't. Simultaneously, a look of victory crossed over their faces. Alison looked at Roach. "This is good. This will be really good" She whispered in an excited voice. It was music to Roach's ears. The look on her face was priceless, one of sly greed and a happily evil kind of look that said 'hey, I'm about to pull a prank!' Roach nodded to Meat. They had decided that Alison would call to Worm, asking him if he could help her with something. They knew he would open the door. Meat then nodded to Alison, who took a deep breath. Roach could tell she was trying to giggle as she eyed the precariously placed can of water. "Hey, Worm, can I have some help?" She asked in an innocent tone. "Sure thing" a muffled voice came through the door. Roach felt an evil smirk crawl onto his face as the knob twisted, and door swing in violently. It was only half a second later that the can came crashing down also.

"FUCK!" Worm screamed as loud as Roach thought was humanly possible. Roach winced as some of the water splashed back on them, but laughed when he saw it was coating Worm waist and below, and there was a flood now invading what looked like a perfectly neat room, which happened to have a pile of clean laundry, now sopping wet, sitting on the floor. Alison must have looked also, for her light and delicate laughing was rippling through the air. "Aw, fuck you man" Worm said as he shoved Meat roughly into the wall. Meat laughed even as his shoulder was rammed into the wall. Roach kept on laughing as Worm looked dejectedly back into his room. "Damn this shit. You fuck ass bitches have a hell of a lot of work to do. Clean all this up, dry my stuff up." Roach stopped laughing. This sure threw a wrench in things. He perked up as he noticed Alison's laughter stopping. He expected her to be looking sullen at the prospect of cleaning something. Instead, she had her emerald green eyes peering up at Worm. Roach shot a look at Worm, who was looking back at her with an exasperated look. Alison batted her eyelashes like a little girl and put out a pouty lip. "Aw, come on Worm. We just wanted to have a little bit of fun. We never meant to hurt you or get you angry. Please, could it wait a little bit? Or you could just make Meat, who drafted us for this, do it instead?" Worm had a look on his face that said 'aw man, come on.' Roach knew that he had been just another one to fall under the incredible spell of innocence Alison could produce. Meat, though, seemed to be shocked at what Alison had just volunteered him for. Worm sighed, sagging his shoulders. "Aw, fuck it. Meat, get your ass in gear and get some towels. You are helping me clean this up." Meat shot a half angry, half desperate look at Alison. She just smiled devilishly and waved a slight wave. Roach waited patiently as she picked her way through the puddles, over to his side, and they walked away, out of the barracks, together.

The rest of the afternoon passed uneventfully, but not once did a look other than pure happiness cross Alison's face. They settled down at dinner that night, the same as lunch, but with salad rather than soup. They even had dessert, pudding, a rare treat in the task force. They were grown men, not some pudding eating sissies. But that didn't mean they didn't love sweets. Roach, though he wouldn't admit it, had some stashed under the floorboards of his bunk. Alison was looking at the bowl of pudding as if it was her savior. "You. Guys. Rock." Roach raised an eyebrow and she plunged her spoon into the brown chocolate gelatin like substance. "What?" She practically inhaled a whole spoonful of pudding, then talked to Roach. "Well, no one else seems to like pudding. It's cool that you guys do." Roach smiled, putting a spoonful of savory pudding into his own mouth. "Yeah. We don't get sweet stuff often." She shrugged. "Well, I hope you guys have it again. I love it." The chocolate lump of pudding that had been in his mouth may as well have turned to cement when she spoke. He knew that the night was coming upon them, and he would have to tell her. He decided to wait until after dinner, right before she went to bed. They finished their pudding together after a round of jokes, and a few laughs at Meat coming in as everyone was finishing. When Alison pushed her bowl to the center of the table, and yawned. "Want to go to bed?" Roach suggested gently. She nodded again, yawning. Roach helped her up, and she headed off to the shower, and he waited in his room on his bunk. His whole body was taught and tense. How was she going to react? More importantly, how was he going to tell her in the first place?

Half an hour of waiting in a cold sweat was what Roach had to endure before Alison glided into the room on feet padded with thick white socks. He stood up as she entered the room. She had on his shorts, which were practically sweatpants on her, and a shirt of his as her top. She had been pretty much wearing his entire wardrobe lately, except for her own pants during the day. It made Roach want to laugh every time he saw a small girl in the large clothes, but he had gotten used to it. The dark military greens brought out her eyes. His face twisted into a look of aching concern. She cocked her head to the side. "Roach, what's wrong?" He rubbed his face with his hands, then they eventually lay thoughtfully on his lips, as if in prayer. He didn't know the best way to do this. "Uh, Alison, maybe you want to sit down?" He sat down on the bottom bunk, and motioned for her to join him. She looked at him warily, then went down to sit next to him. "Uh, Roach, you're acting weird. What is it?" Roach rubbed his chin with a single hand, then decided to start. "You know why we are here, right?" Alison nodded. "Yeah, to kill Makarov. Some of the guys told me on the scale where nothing would edge into 'classified.' So, yes, I have a general idea." Roach nodded. "Well, Alison, this is very dangerous. We have lost many men to this so far, and we are going to lose more, I am sure. I'm not saying I want that to happen, I am just saying it is inevitable. We are getting closer to him, much closer, but not close enough. This is a very dangerous job, and even here in this base we are in constant threat of death. That is a part of being in the 141." Alison cocked her head to the side. "So, just being part of the 141, being on this base, makes you in danger?" Roach nodded. "That's the thing. We are in constant danger. In no way would we want to purposefully want someone who isn't a soldier to be put in that danger." Alison's eyes widened as she realized what he was saying. "So, you mean someone like me?" Roach heard her breath come out not much more than a squeak. He put an arm around her, and pulled her close to him. "Yes. We wouldn't want you to be in danger. You have done so much for us, and made us realize so much, but the fact is, every second you are here you are in danger. No one here wants anything to happen to you. It is also not usual protocol to have civilians on base. We tried to see if there was anything you could do here, but we all came down to one conclusion-We would rather you to be safe than in danger, even if you being safe meant you had to leave." He sighed, and felt her bury her face into his chest. "I'm leaving?" She cried. Roach nodded, whispering gently into her ear. "Tomorrow morning. We are going to go in a helicopter to an airport, where Social Services will find you a family. A better one, a safer one, than we could ever be." By now her shoulders were wracked with sobs, and Roach kept a protective arm around her. "But" she sobbed. "That's the thing. You seem like my family now. For God's sake, my actual family is dead now! You guys are the closest thing to it!" Roach blinked once or twice, to clear the tears forming in his eyes. "We know. That makes it hurt for us too. But I promise you-It is better for you." She didn't say another word, only let out another sob. They sat there for the better part of the next hour, Alison curled close to Roach, crying until her breath came in short gasps. Roach gently picked up her small form and placed it on the cot, gently stroking her hair until she fell into sleep. Only then did Roach allow himself some tears.

**I found a new band to listen to :D Wrote this while listening to one of their albums. So happy. This is a sad end though, and it made me mad when I read it over and I was like 'this is pure shit.' So, anyway, if this didn't make you sad, the next chapter is a practical guarantee. Okay, and here is another thing. I have reviewed some other stories, and anonymous reviewers have flamed my story on other peoples story reviews. This pisses me off, because if you have a problem with me, take it up with me in a non anonymous fashion. Thank you all. Hope you enjoyed it, even if I don't. (Oh, and if you want to read good writing, check out UniqueBeing's story 'Can You Fix Me?' I love it!)**


	41. Saying Goodbye

**Largest chapter yet. Be warned-Tissues will need to be at hand! I love all of my lovely reviewers. More on that later- Not a second in this chapter is dull!**

Ghost had been away the whole day, burdened with the news of Alison's departure. He was thinking of everything he could do to tell her just how much he owed her. He had also put together something to give Alison when she leaves. It was late that night when he finished what he was planning. He walked back over to the barracks and entered his room quietly, seeing that the door was closed and no light shone through the cracks. He entered the room on feet more silent than cat's footsteps, and saw immediately that Alison was asleep, but Roach was doing something. Ghost whispered through the darkness. "What are you doing, Roach?" Roach turned around, quickly hiding something behind his back. "Nothing, Ghost. I just told her that she is leaving. She took it hard and cried until she fell asleep. I am getting her something so she can remember us when she is gone." Ghost nodded. "What is it?" Roach told him, and Ghost was relieved to hear that the idea what not his own. "That's good. I got her something too." Roach nodded, and Ghost went up to his bunk. He closed his eyes, but didn't fall asleep. He heard Roach rustle around for a little bit longer that night before retiring to his bed. Ghost just sat there in the dark, awake and aware.

It was early in the morning when he heard the sound of something rustling. He knew that by the sound of it, it was Alison. He sat up quietly, and saw through the dark that her small form was looking up at him. "What is it?" He whispered to her, his voice filled with more concern than he thought that he was capable of. She shook her head. "Nothing. Just thinking." Ghost slid down from the bunk against his better judgment, and walked over to her cot. "Do you want to take another walk?" She nodded, and he helped her up. They exited the room together, and walked out into the dark night. The sky was filled with so many stars it looked like a preschooler had poured glitter over black paper. They walked around the perimeter of base together, but once they were about halfway around, Ghost was the first to break the silence. He was full of too many thoughts to stay silent for too long. "So, you heard?" He asked gently, hoping that he didn't make her hurt worse. She nodded. "Yeah. I just, don't know how to react. Nothing like this has ever happened to me before." Ghost cracked his knuckles once before carefully crafting a response. "Well, I bet everything that has happened has seemed like a dream to you. A nightmare, sometimes." Ghost hoped that he had said the right things. Relief swept over him as she responded softly and thoughtfully. "You're right. Sometimes it was just surreal, and other times it was my worst nightmare. I have never felt so confused in my life. The only thing is though, over the past few weeks, I've begin to feel like you guys are my family." Ghost felt an itching in his skin. They were beginning to venture into uncharted territory. Somehow though, Ghost knew that he had to have answers. "It hurts us to let you go too. But I think me most of all. You, now, I would never usually admit this, but you saved me. I have been in a nightmare, drowning in my own fear the past month or so. You have helped me, pulled me up. I thought about what you said much earlier. How we were never thanked, and I said it wasn't normal, and you said it should be. You feel like the thanks' I've never gotten. I didn't know anyone I saved. Now I do, and I don't think I'll be able to forget." He muttered the last few words, hating to come to face things that he usually wouldn't admit. But he had to let her know before she left. She looked up at him, her eyes faintly glowing in the night. "I know you deserve it. You saved my life. More than that though, you gave me a family when I needed one the most. I think you and Roach mean the most to me though. Roach is like an older brother. Looking out for me, protecting me, and being one of my best friends. But you-This is hard to put into words, but you are like my dad." Ghost looked down at her with wide eyes. He would have expected lots of things, lots of feelings, but this was definitely not what he expected. She must have noticed his shocked expression, for she continued to explain. "Yes, my father. He was always caring, even though sometimes he was icy and seemed like he didn't care. But I knew he did. We would talk together lots, and sometimes would argue logic. I have done that so much with you, and lately it seems like you are more of a father than my father ever was to me. I have found it impossible to put into words before now, but now I am leaving, I wanted to tell you." They had just rounded the corner, and the barracks were edging closer. He suddenly put an arm around her shoulder, and knelt down to whisper in her ear. "I am glad that I have been able to give you something in your time here. You have helped me so much. You helped me recover who I truly am. That is something that you can never repay." She didn't have a response to this, and Ghost suddenly felt extremely vulnerable. He didn't mind that the rest of the way to their room was in silence. When they crawled into their beds though, Alison said one thing that struck him through the dark. "But that's the thing, Ghost. You already have repaid it over and over for being who you are. Thank you." The rest of the night, not another word was spoken between the two.

Roach woke fairly early the next morning, just as golden orange light began to seep into the room. He swung his feet over the edge of the bed, and set them quietly on the ground. He looked over immediately at the cot, and found Alison stirring. He checked the clock, which read eight thirty in green numbers. She shook her head gently, and Roach's eyes found hers immediately. She smiled weakly, and Roach smiled back in the same fashion. Though his lips were curved up in a slight smile, his eyes were full of pain. He knew that she was leaving in a few hours. She started to speak, her voice seeming impossibly thin and sad to Roach. "I'm going to go get showered and dressed. Do you have a shirt I can borrow? I have my shorts, though, so I don't need to borrow any of your shorts." Roach nodded, and walked over to his closet. He pulled out the dark green shirt that he liked, and she loved. It was the shirt that was the smallest on her. She walked out of the room after a small "thanks" and Roach tried to neaten up a bit, making his bed, trying to not think about what would come later that day.

About an hour later, they were all down in the mess hall, Ghost included. Alison was still looking sad, and to Roach's dismay, it seemed nothing he said could cheer her up. They settled down to a breakfast of breakfast pizza and oatmeal. Alison did seem to perk up though, when the guys began to make jokes. Roach couldn't help but laugh himself when Meat described having to clean Worm's room like it was a kind of torture. He glared playfully at Alison who put up her hands defensively. "Hey, it was your idea!" She spoke in a lighter tone than she had used all day. Roach sighed in relief. Leave it to Meat to lighten the mood a bit. His brief feeling of happiness turned to undisguised dread as Meat spoke again, saying "Well, you had better not do it again!" The light chuckles that had been coming from Alison's mouth ceased. Roach cursed himself for not telling the guys yesterday that she was leaving today. Her head tilted down towards her plate. Everyone seemed to sense that something was wrong. Roach was about to speak himself, but Alison beat him to it. "I leave today in another hour." Complete silence swept over anyone who was in earshot, and Roach winced. He could see the shocked reactions, and he knew that Alison could to. It was obvious in every man's face that they cared for her, and were devastated to know that she was going. There were a few murmurs all around, but though he tried, Roach couldn't hear any words. He was desperate to do something, ease the situation, but the silence remained. No one, not even Roach, could think of something to say. Alison ended the silence by pushing her plate, still filled with food, away from her. "I'm not hungry anymore." She stood up and walked out, but Roach and Ghost were both right behind her. Roach didn't care about the silence that he was leaving the mess hall in-He only cared about Alison.

They got to the barracks, and some point in the exit from the mess hall they caught up with her. Roach put an arm around her shoulder, and she didn't argue. They walked into the room, and peered at the clock. It was about nine o clock. Alison sniffed. "I think we should get my stuff together, if I have anything to get together." Roach nodded in agreement. He didn't know how much stuff she would get going where she was going, so he thought quickly. HE went over to the closet and pulled out a duffle bag that he didn't use, and wouldn't ever use. He put it on his bed and opened it. "Okay, what about clothes?" He started. Alison shrugged. "I have my shorts, and my shoes. I am wearing both." Roach wanted to give her something, though. He had it planned in his head. He opened his own closet, and pulled out two of his smallest shirts, a few of the ones that she had been wearing. He didn't need them, and if he suddenly did, he could buy more. Roach folded them quickly and put them into the bag. He smiled as best as he could, and tried to make his voice sound light. "Well, we can't leave you with what you are wearing. You can have these. And these-" He said, pulling some shorts off of one of the shelves, and folding those also, placing them in the duffle bag. He zipped it up, handing it to her. "Here you go. Some clothes. You can also get the toothbrush and toothpaste, I guess. Anything else you want, too." He sat there quietly as she went to go get the toothbrush. Ghost was sitting on the bunk above Roach. His voice was thick when it spoke, almost like metal on metal to Roach's ears. "It's really nice for you to think of her. She has done so much for us." Roach sighed. "I know. I know."

The clock switched to ten. Alison had hung out with Roach and Ghost the last hour, but now they stood in MacTavish's office. Alison had the duffle swung over her shoulder. Roach wasn't the only one in the office with Alison. Ghost and Archer were also. The captain was standing, nodding. "So, are we ready?" They all nodded, and Roach felt Alison edge closer to him. She was tense, and her face had a look of sadness on it. MacTavish nodded in confirmation, and the four walked to the helicopter. Alison was able to pick three to go along with her to the airport in addition to MacTavish, and Roach, Ghost, and Archer were chosen without hesitation. They all climbed into a helicopter, Alison with a bit of help, and Roach took a deep breath. They were embarking on a journey of sorts, one that he knew tears would be shed on. Alison looked out, back at the base camp, and tears began to brim in her eyes. Roach scooted close to her, and wrapped her in a hug as they rose into the air. "It's okay." He whispered into her ear, even though he knew it really wasn't.

The flight took about half an hour. They reached the airport, the helicopter landing on the helipad. The men all climbed out, and Roach noticed that Ghost had a backpack on. He had one on himself, but Roach guessed that Ghost had it on for the same reason. The captain took the lead, with Alison right behind him. Roach was on her right, Ghost on her left, and Archer behind. They didn't speak much, but Roach felt uncomfortable as they began to draw stares. They walked into the airport, and MacTavish looked at a piece of paper he had in his hands. "Hm. They said they would be in terminal fourteen. This is twelve, so there is fourteen." The captain spoke, then pointed to an area of the airport with a '14' hanging above it. Roach felt Alison take a deep breath. They all walked over to the terminal, and Roach noticed the woman right away. The terminal was not crowded, as the flight did not leave for quite a while yet. She was about 5" 8', and wearing a neat suit. She had a messenger bag over her shoulder, and when she spotted them, she stood. Her face was welcoming and friendly, her dark brown eyes sparkling and clear. Roach immediately felt confident in leaving Alison in her hands. The captain and she exchanged words, shaking hands. Alison seemed to start to shake next to him. The woman walked closer. She smiled and looked at Alison. "Hi Alison!" She said in a friendly voice. Alison smiled, the tension seeming to relieve a little. "Hi." The woman smiled. "I'm Kathleen Johnson." Alison took a small breath. "Hi Ms. Johnson." The woman smiled again, even wider. Roach was impressed. Alison sure did know how to impress adults. The woman motioned for Alison to walk over to her. Roach felt Alison tense again, but then walked closer to the woman. The two talked for a moment, and Roach could hear all the words, even though they were hushed. "Hey, Alison, are you ready to go? I see you have your bag." Alison nodded. "Yeah. I'm ready." Roach could hear the tremor in her voice. The woman spoke again, kindly. "I know everything that you have been through. It sounds awful, but I hear that you also have some friends." Roach knew immediately the woman was talking about them. Alison nodded. "Yeah, I guess so." The woman smiled wider, perfect white teeth showing. "Well, we have a little while yet, so you can say goodbye. It seems that they came here with you." Alison nodded again. "Yeah. They're pretty cool." The woman spoke again. "Well, they do look like quite cool people. And, they have the looks too." The woman gave a playful wink and Alison giggled. The woman ushered her to say goodbye to them. Alison turned around, and walked back over to them. Roach had guessed what would happen. She would say goodbye to him last, he could sense that. She went over to Archer first.

Roach could hear every word, but he was sure that Archer didn't mind. The large, stoic sniper knelt down to her height with a smiling, yet sad expression on his face. Alison was the first to speak of the two. "Hey, thanks a lot for being fun. You are a pretty cool guy." Archer smiled, and dug a hand into his pocket. He brought out a closed fist. He looked Alison right in the eye, and put a hand on her shoulder. "You did a lot for us as a team. We owe you a lot. I have some things for you." He looked down at his hand, and Alison did also. He opened his palm, and in it, there was a bullet casing and a compass. He looked her right in the eye, and pointed to the bullet casing. "This" he said softly. "Is the casing from a bullet. On my first mission, I got hit in the leg, and this is the casing from that bullet. I carried it with me from that day on. It is my luck charm, and I want you to have it." Alison's eyes opened wide, and she opened her mouth as if to say something, but Archer continued on. "This, this is my compass. It is special to me. I got it the day I left for the Army. My parents said it would remind me to keep my emotions, attitude, and feelings all pointed in the right direction. It has in so many ways. I want you to have it also." He took her hand, and nestled the two small items in her palm. He wrapped her fingers around them, and wrapped her in a hug. She hugged him back, a tear snaking its way down her cheek. Roach watched them step away from each other, and Alison walk over to Ghost.

Ghost watched as Alison came closer to him. He also knelt down like Archer had, slipping his backpack off of his shoulder. He looked into her deep green eyes, brimming with crystal tears. He smiled sadly, knowing that he had to say goodbye. They might, but very unlikely, meet again. She threw herself into his arms right away, whispering into his ear. "I am going to miss you." Ghost hugged her back, but the embrace ended quickly. He showed her the backpack. "This" he explained in a serious tone. "Is a backpack that I sometimes used in the field. I don't need it anymore. You can have it." Her eyes opened wide, but Ghost wasn't finished. He had known that the backpack alone was a great gift, but he wanted to get her something more. He opened the largest of the zippers, and there were three small objects at the bottom of the pack. He reached in, and brought the smallest out. "This" he explained to her. "Is a lighter. I know you don't smoke, but you never know when you will need one." The next thing he brought out was a medium sized one, and explained it to her gently. "This is a Swiss army knife. It has everything you could think of needing in it. It was mine for a very long time, but I don't need it. I just think that it would be a nice thing for you to have." She smiled, and piped up very softly. "It would remind me of you. It's perfect." He smiled and brought out the last thing in the pack. It was a piece of something that looked like silver. He placed it in her palm, letting her read it. He smiled. "When I left for the army, my teacher gave me that. My teacher and I were close, as I didn't have parents. That is the Warriors Ethos-" I will always place the mission first. I will never accept defeat. I will never quit. I will never leave a fallen comrade" He had it made from low grade silver, and that carved into it. He said that he wanted to remember that. It won't mean much to you, I guess, but it meant a lot to me. I want you to have it." He saw a silver tear slip down her cheek. "But that's the thing" she whispered in a sweet, soft voice. "It will mean a lot to me, because it meant a lot to you." She placed it back in the backpack, and Ghost zipped it shut. Alison took it, put it over her shoulder. Then, after a small sob, they embraced. Ghost didn't know how long they were there, but the hug said everything that he couldn't put into words. "You gave me my life back" he told her. She whispered into his ear once again. "No. You did that yourself. I was just someone on your way there." Ghost smiled as they pulled back. "No. You were my path there." Alison blinked away the tears that were coming, and walked over to Roach. Ghost already felt like he was losing a part of himself. He promised himself that he would stay strong though. He owed her that much for helping him get his life back.

Roach saw her steps waver as she walked towards him. Roach could almost swear she was shaking. He knelt down as she got to him. Her eyes were already leaking tears. He gently brushed them away, along with a strand of hair that was falling in her face. She smiled. Roach did also, though he felt tears threatening himself. He took his own backpack off his shoulders. "Now, don't tell me you are going to give me that too" she joked in a thin, teary voice. Roach shook his head. "Nope. You have enough to carry. It's what's inside." He pulled out a thickly woven band first. She tilted her head, but Roach slipped it onto her wrist. "It's a bracelet made of paracord. Useful, and a bracelet. If you are ever in a desperate situation, you disassemble it, and it is a length of cord that is very strong. I hope you like it." Roach had had that for a long time, and had worn it on a few missions, but never needed it. He was sure she would love the black and white design that it sported. The smile on her face told him he was right. Then he reached down into the pack again. He held an envelope in his hand. He handed it to her. "In here is the address to our camp. Well, or the place that gets mail to us. I want you to write us all the time. It might take a while for the letters to get to us, but that doesn't matter. We won't let you slip away. Alison smiled, slipped the envelope into one of her bags, and wiped a tear hastily away. Roach held up a finger. "One last thing. This one is very special." Roach reached his hand back into the backpack, and gripped a furry, small object very gently. He brought his hand out to Alison, and showed her a small, brown, tattered teddy bear. "This" he explained. "Is Brownie. He is a little bear. I got him when I was three years old, and he is incredibly special to me. I usually wouldn't even let someone else see him, but I know that you will take special care of him. I used to love him a lot, even until I was a teenager, and I haven't given him up. Now I entrust him to you, and I hope that he makes you as happy as he used to make me." He gently placed the bear into the girls shaking hands. She took him gently, and wrapped the bear in a hug. After a moment, she placed it gently into the backpack with such care, as if it was made of glass. She turned back to him, and launched herself into his arms. Roach wrapped his arms around her, and let her cry into his shoulder. "I don't think I will be able to say goodbye" she said after a minute of crying. Roach smiled sadly, and whispered gently into her ear through a curtain of brown hair. "There is no saying goodbye. Only I will see you again." Alison returned the whisper, through tears and small sobs. "Then, I will see you again." Roach took a deep breath himself. "Yes. I will." The two stepped back, and with red eyes, tear streaked face, Alison stepped away and back to the woman. The captain shook her hand one more time. "Let's go men." He said to the three. Roach took a deep breath.

Roach turned away with reluctance, following moments after MacTavish, Archer, and Ghost. He looked over his shoulder once, to see Alison staring after him. He gave a small wave, and she returned it. He set his face ahead, which was beginning to have tears falling down it, ahead of him. He looked right into Ghost's back, willing himself not to turn around again. They reached the helicopter, and climbed into it. Roach then allowed himself to look back at the airport. The blades started to whir above them, creating a choppy thunder. Roach blinked rapidly as they rose into the air, into the mid-day sun. The tears still fell. They rose into the air, and started away, and Roach watched as the airport grew smaller and smaller. And with it, he felt Alison slowly slipping away. He didn't know how he would deal with this. He knew he would have to though. They continued to fly, Roach looking back at the spot which was now on the horizon, where Alison was now. Roach told himself that it would be okay. It would all be okay.

**THE END**

**There you go. The moment you have been waiting for (or dreading) I was so sad when I wrote it, and I was very frustrated- I could not think of a good ending sentence, so I had to go with this! Anyway, it is fine I hope. There will be an epilogue, for sure. I wouldn't leave you hanging! Tommorow, probably. I spent all day on this. I thank Nioba, and Dustman, for those are the ones who gave me the ideas for the going away gifts! I was so sad when I wrote this. I would like to say so much, but here is one word to all of my reviewers- You guys are the best! Lately I have had so many thoughtful reviews it is like I have been walking on clouds. Tell me what you think of this chapter, please! I hope the epilogue is good for you guys. Not to mention, everyone I have heard is rooting for a sequel. I have never in my life done a sequel, so give me some ideas **


	42. Epilogue

**This is an epilogue, because I could leave you all with a sad Roach, could i? Long note at the bottom!**

Roach sat on one of the rec room couches three months later, listening to Archer and Toad argue about sniping tactics, while Meat and Chemo argued over a prank they were going to pull on Rook. Roach had a hand covering his eyes, and he thought about the past months. The first few days after Alison had left had been rough, with most of base camp sullen and moody, as well as silent. Ghost, though, pushed them back into their normal routine about a week later. Roach felt fine, the few missions that they had done ending successfully. Ghost had ordered more red sunglasses online, and now was sporting them full time. It made Roach realize how quickly things could go back to normal after they lost someone. For a sickening moment, Roach wondered if they would get over losing another member so quickly, but he pushed that thought aside. He groaned loudly in protest as Rocket came crashing his way after Worm punched him in the shoulder. Rook was pretty much the only one missing from the room. Suddenly, the doors came crashing open. It was Rook. Roach sat up. The man had an ecstatic look on his face. Roach looked at him, as did everyone else. Rook had an envelope gripped in one hand and was holding it above his head. "A letter?" Roach asked, getting to his feet. Rook shook his head, walking towards him. When he spoke, his voice was filled with excitement. "You don't understand! It has a different address, one from the United States!" Roach ran to meet the man, and was handed the envelope immediately. The paper was crisp white, the words penned in perfect, black ink. It was thick, obviously filled with paper. Roach tore it open as he sat on the couch, and the others crowded around him. Roach prayed that it was from Alison.

He slipped a piece of paper out. It was as white and crisp as the envelope. With shaky hands, Roach unfolded the paper. The words were written in a jet black ink, and the letters were formed perfectly. The only flaws were where there were miniscule blotches in the ink in circles, the result of tear drops. Roach read the letter aloud.

Dear Roach, Ghost, Archer, Toad, Meat, Chemo, Rook, Rocket, Worm, Royce, Scarecrow, and MacTavish,

I have so much to say, and only so much paper! First of all, I started to cry as soon as you all left. Nothing is the same without you guys. I know we went through a lot together, and it sucks without you. Anyway, it turns out the lady was really nice. A family heard what I had been through, and they just lost their kid who was a little bit older than me in a car crash. I feel so bad for them, but they adopted me, of all things! They are really nice people, and my new mom's name is Bethany Curtis and my new dad is Thomas Curtis. They told me that I could keep my old last name, but I figured that I had to keep my parents in my memory, but they wouldn't want me to be stuck in the past. So, my new name is Alison Curtis. How great is that? We live in Colorado. Actually, in a little piece of land right outside of Denver. It is so cool, but I can't describe it in words. I have pictures of my new parents and our house and yard (well, more of, land) attached to this. Anyway, that's all I have to say to all of you, because, well, I am not an interesting person! I am going to a new school soon. Oh, did I mention, I have an Xbox? That's so cool, and my parents bought me Call of Duty, but I am going to have to go through all the levels and prestige again. Oh well, more reasons to game! I am shipping a huge box of stuff, (you'll find out once you get it!) but it might come later than this little letter. You are in 'god damn Russia' as you put it, so I don't know how fast it takes mail!

Your friend,

Alison Curtis.

Roach smiled as he finished reading the letter aloud. It sounded like she was having a pretty good time. He reached his hand back into the envelope, and pulled out another piece of paper and a few pictures. He showed the pictures to everyone first. The first was of Alison, smiling, with a man and a woman on either side of her. The woman looked smiling, nice, and in comparison to Alison, about five foot nine. Her hair was a shiny brown with blondish streaks, and she had perfect, white, smiling teeth. She looked like someone from a movie. The man was about six feet tall with slightly spiky dark brown hair and a bit of rough stubble on his chin. He was smiling also, but his lips were pressed tight together. His dark blue eyes sparkled with joy, but he looked thoughtful and collected, but someone who could also be a lot of fun. The next picture was of sweeping countryside, dark green pine trees and light grass in dappled sunlight. The backdrop was a clear blue sky, and tall gray mountains capped in white. A few of the guys let out soft whistles, and a few were still smiling from the letter. Archer was the first to speak up. "That looks nice." Roach nodded, and pulled out the last picture. It was of Alison high up in a tree, smiling and waving at the camera. She was leaning with her back against the tree just as Roach had. It appeared as if in one hand, between two fingers, she was holding something. Roach looked closer, and said "No way" under his breath. He could feel the weight of the other guys pressing in to get closer, to see what he saw. Archer was the first one to laugh, then Meat joined in as well. It only took a few moments for the rest of the men to get it as well. Roach couldn't help but smile as he looked at the picture. Between her two fingers was a cockroach.

The laughter didn't die down anytime soon. Roach thought to himself about what a sense of humor she had. Going up a tree, and hanging out there with a cockroach. A roach, just like himself. He smiled and shook his head. He passed the picture out to the guys, who all took turns looking and laughing. The letter and the picture were all passed around in turn, words and laughter being passed around as well. They returned the letter to Roach as well as the pictures and dispersed back to their various activities. Roach hadn't told them or showed them the other piece of paper, though. The one with his name only on it. He sat down in the farthest corner of the rec room and read it over.

Dear Roach,

Hey, Roach! What's up? The other letter was kind of shallow, I know. It sounds like I took to it all pretty well. To tell the truth, it was kind of a shock. I got to the airport in the US and there was already a family waiting for me. The lady told me it was a 'surprise' and that 'it usually didn't work that way, but I was an exception' because of what happened to me. Figures, but I am cool with it. My mom is really cool, all nice and motherly, and never strict. Well, I never give her a reason to be strict in the first place! My dad is also pretty cool, he is really smart and thoughtful. He reminds me of Ghost a bit, because he is kind of drawn back and swears. I don't mind though, anything to remind me of you guys. As for our house, it is pretty big. I have my own room, and that is pretty much where I spent my first day in shock. It was all so fast. I was kind of drawn back the first week, but they are actually really nice people. They said I can call them "Bethany" and "Tim" for now, but I started calling them mom and dad right away. I also have a counselor/therapist person I am going to. She is really nice, and we talk about how things are going over. I have been telling her about you guys (Just how you act, not the base at all. I wouldn't give away classified crap like that!) And she says she thinks it would be cool to meet you. Anyway, my life is pretty cool. I am starting school soon, I just need to get settled first. As for what will be in the box, it is cookie mix, and cake mix, and a whole bunch of other mixes. My mom (Bethany) taught me. You put all the dry ingredients for a recipe in a jar, then attach the recipe and instructions on the jar, so all you have to do is add butter or something, mix, and bake. I knew you liked sweet stuff. Anyway, I thought that you would like the picture of me in the tree with the cockroach. You got it right away, I bet. Anyway, not much else to say without being self-centered. And yes, not goodbye.

See you again,

Alison Curtis

Roach blinked away a tear of happiness. He was happy, and he was happy. For all he cared, the world could be ending right now, but it didn't matter. They were both happy.

**Now, in all honesty, this is the end. THe very end, no more. But, as a promise, there will be an sequel! More on that later though. Right now, I would like to thank Queenkhs, for being my first reviewer and constant reviewer, as well as constant support. I love you so much, and in so many ways! You are the reason I kept this going. You also helped me get over my first flame, and keep on writing, so, thank you more than you ever can imagine. (Everyone else, please check out her stories! They are amazing!) Thank you CODxbossx for being my second reviewer, though not constant. We shared many nice PM's, didn't we? Thank you for being so cool. Dustman, once again, you rock. One of my best reader and reviewers. Always appreciative, and it is nice that you are so connected with the characters. I hope the sequel pleases you. Thank you SuzySlasher, my first flamer. Yes, I am thanking my first flamer. It was only partially about my story, instead about I comment I made on Roach not being gay. I also thank all the other (Four in total) flamers. Yes, once again, I am thanking flamers. You guys are the reason that I am able to smile about my writing. No matter how mad I am momentarily at the comment, I know that a flame is nothing more than anger, jealousy that their writing isnt that good (Not that mine is good, that is just how they think), and reminding me that I am better than that. The feeling that I get in my chest reminds me why I never do that to another persons story. Thank you UniqueBeing for being fun, emotional, sporadic, and everything else I can think of in all of your reviews and PM's, You are a lovely person, and I am glad that you enjoy my story this much, and that you are eager for the sequel. Thank you Nioba, I think, you probably rank right up there in the best of them. You corrected me in my mistakes in a polite and constructive manner, while giving me information that I have not lived first hand (Such as drinking and holding such a rifle) while being polite. Also, for giving me suggestions on my tokens for Alison. They will return in the sequel, I promise you! Also, for the suggestions, I regret that I am not able to fix them. Well, I am able to, its just that I am betaless at the moment, and I don't really have the time to go over everything because I have a very busy life, not to mention working on pleasing you all by updating constantly! Now for the part about the sequel. It will be about the same characters (duh), and there will be plenty of twists to throw you off. I don't know what I am going to call it, as a general overview for you all to help me, it is about Alison going to visit them as part of her counseling/therapy to adjust to her new life. On the way, the helicopter is captured by Makarov and the guys come to rescue her, but there are a few twists. They are all stranded in the woods together, with no means of returning home. Now, title ideas are welcome. First chapter will be up tonight! Now is the time to subscribe to author alerts, due to the fact that this story will no longer be updated! So, if you want to be up to date on the other things I write, subscribe Thank you all, you all make my life amazing! I am glad that you enjoyed "Unmaksing Ghost" , and have a very nice rest of the day.**

**For the last time in this story, **

**Dancing Tiger, out!**


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